Meaning & Definition of Secret in English

1. Something that should remain hidden from others (especially information that is not to be passed on)

• "The combination to the safe was a secret"

• "He tried to keep his drinking a secret"

2. Information known only to a special group

• "The secret of cajun cooking"

3. Something that baffles understanding and cannot be explained

• "How it got out is a mystery"

• "It remains one of nature's secrets"

1. Not open or public

• Kept private or not revealed

• "A secret formula"

• "Secret ingredients"

• "Secret talks"

2. Conducted with or marked by hidden aims or methods

• "Clandestine intelligence operations"

• "Cloak-and-dagger activities behind enemy lines"

• "Hole-and-corner intrigue"

• "Secret missions"

• "A secret agent"

• "Secret sales of arms"

• "Surreptitious mobilization of troops"

• "An undercover investigation"

• "Underground resistance"

3. Not openly made known

• "A secret marriage"

• "A secret bride"

4. Communicated covertly

• "Their secret signal was a wink"

• "Secret messages"

5. Not expressed

• "Secret (or private) thoughts"

6. Designed to elude detection

• "A hidden room or place of concealment such as a priest hole"

• "A secret passage"

• "The secret compartment in the desk"

7. Hidden from general view or use

• "A privy place to rest and think"

• "A secluded romantic spot"

• "A secret garden"

8. (of information) given in confidence or in secret

• "This arrangement must be kept confidential"

• "Their secret communications"

9. Indulging only covertly

• "A secret alcoholic"

10. Having an import not apparent to the senses nor obvious to the intelligence

• Beyond ordinary understanding

• "Mysterious symbols"

• "The mystical style of blake"

• "Occult lore"

• "The secret learning of the ancients"

11. The next to highest level of official classification for documents