secret

[ see-krit ]

adjective

1. done, made, or conducted without the knowledge of others:

   secret negotiations.

   Synonyms: covert, hidden, clandestine

   Antonyms: manifest, open

2. kept from the knowledge of any but the initiated or privileged:

   a secret password.

   Synonyms: confidential, private

3. faithful or cautious in keeping confidential matters confidential; close-mouthed; discreet.

   Synonyms: reticent, secretive, close

4. designed or working to escape notice, knowledge, or observation: the secret police.

   a secret drawer;

   the secret police.

5. secluded, sheltered, or withdrawn:

   a secret hiding place.

6. beyond ordinary human understanding; esoteric.

   Synonyms: mysterious, cryptic, occult

7. (of information, a document, etc.)
   1. bearing the classification secret.
   2. limited to persons authorized to use information documents, etc., so classified.

noun

1. something that is or is kept secret, hidden, or concealed.
2. a mystery:

   the secrets of nature.

3. a reason or explanation not immediately or generally apparent.
4. a method, formula, plan, etc., known only to the initiated or the few: a trade secret.

   the secret of happiness;

   a trade secret.

5. a classification assigned to information, a document, etc., considered less vital to security than top-secret but more vital than confidential, and limiting its use to persons who have been cleared, as by various government agencies, as trustworthy to handle such material. Compare classification ( def 5 ).
6. (initial capital letter) Liturgy. a variable prayer in the Roman and other Latin liturgies, said inaudibly by the celebrant after the offertory and immediately before the preface.

secret

/ ˈsiːkrɪt /

adjective

1. kept hidden or separate from the knowledge of others cryptic
2. known only to initiates

   a secret password

3. hidden from general view or use

   a secret garden

4. able or tending to keep things private or to oneself
5. operating without the knowledge of outsiders

   a secret society

6. outside the normal range of knowledge

noun

1. something kept or to be kept hidden
2. something unrevealed; mystery
3. an underlying explanation, reason, etc, that is not apparent

   the secret of success

4. a method, plan, etc, known only to initiates
5. liturgy a variable prayer, part of the Mass, said by the celebrant after the offertory and before the preface
6. in the secret
   among the people who know a secret

Derived Forms

• ˈsecretly, adverb

Other Words From

• se·cret·ly adverb
• se·cret·ness noun
• non·se·cret adjective noun
• qua·si-se·cret adjective
• sem·i·se·cret adjective
• su·per·se·cret noun
• ul·tra·se·cret adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of secret¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English secrette, from Old French secret, from Latin sēcrētus “hidden,” originally past participle of sēcernere “to secern ”

Word History and Origins

Origin of secret¹

C14: via Old French from Latin sēcrētus concealed, from sēcernere to sift; see secern

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. in secret, unknown to others; in private; secretly:

   A resistance movement was already being organized in secret.

More idioms and phrases containing secret

see in secret ; open secret .

Example Sentences

Mr. Turing, a math genius and secret hero of World War II, was mistreated by England near the end of his life.

From NewsForKids.net

She said she hoped bringing stories which had been secret for so long onto a public stage would help to lessen stigma.

From BBC

Published Wednesday in Nature's Scientific Reports, the study sheds light on an ancient Egyptian mystery: The secret of how Bes mugs were used about 2,000 years ago.

From Science Daily

Using historical data from whaling alongside contemporary data -- such as satellite tagging and photo-identification -- remains scientists' best hope for uncovering the secrets of the largest animal on Earth.

From Science Daily

It’s no secret that country music hasn’t had a lot of Black stars.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• code
• confidential information
• key
• mystery