classified

[ klas-uh-fahyd ]

adjective

1. arranged or distributed in classes or according to class:

   We plan to review all the classified specimens in the laboratory.

2. designating the part or parts of a publication that contain advertisements or lists arranged by category:

   The classified section of our little local newspaper is full of ads for garage sales and cleaning ladies.

3. (of information, a document, etc.)
   1. available only to authorized persons. Compare classification ( def 5 ).
   2. bearing the designation classified.
4. confidential or secret:

   The firm's promotional budget for next year is classified information.

5. identified as belonging to a specific group or category, as one to which benefits or restrictions apply:

   Classified buildings are eligible for state-funded restoration. The bank has a list of classified customers to whom it will not make large loans.

noun

1. classified ad ( def ).

classified

/ ˈklæsɪˌfaɪd /

adjective

1. arranged according to some system of classification
2. government (of information) not available to people outside a restricted group, esp for reasons of national security
3. (of information) closely concealed or secret
4. (of advertisements in newspapers, etc) arranged according to type
5. (of newspapers) containing sports results, esp football results
6. (of British roads) having a number in the national road system. If the number is preceded by an M the road is a motorway, if by an A it is a first-class road, and if by a B it is a secondary road

Other Words From

• non·classi·fied adjective
• super·classi·fied adjective
• well-classi·fied adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of classified¹

First recorded in 1885–90; 1940–45 classified fordef 3; classify + -ed ²

Example Sentences

EU antitrust head Margrethe Vestager said Facebook had impeded other online classified ads service providers.

From BBC

"It did so to benefit its own service Facebook Marketplace, thereby giving it advantages that other online classified ads service providers could not match," she added,

From BBC

The European Commission said this meant alternative classified ads services had faced "unfair trading conditions", making it harder for them to compete.

From BBC

Trump and some other legal minds in his orbit have suggested Trump should go after those prosecutors who have targeted him and his companies — including Special Counsel Jack Smith, who has pursued criminal cases against Trump for his incitement of the Jan. 6 insurrection and his hoarding of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago resort; and Letitia “Tish” James, the New York attorney general who won a massive fraud judgment against Trump for inflating his net worth to win preferable insurance and loan terms.

From Los Angeles Times

He has relentlessly condemned Merrick Garland, Biden’s attorney general, as well as special counsel Jack Smith, who charged Trump with election subversion and theft of classified documents.

From Slate

Related Words

• confidential
• restricted