SECRET

unavowed, secret

(adjective) not openly made known; “a secret marriage”; “a secret bride”

secret

(adjective) the next to highest level of official classification for documents

mysterious, mystic, mystical, occult, secret, orphic

(adjective) 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”

secret, private

(adjective) not expressed; “secret (or private) thoughts”

clandestine, cloak-and-dagger, hole-and-corner, hugger-mugger, hush-hush, secret, surreptitious, undercover, underground

(adjective) 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”

secret

(adjective) indulging only covertly; “a secret alcoholic”

secret

(adjective) communicated covertly; “their secret signal was a wink”; “secret messages”

confidential, secret

(adjective) (of information) given in confidence or in secret; “this arrangement must be kept confidential”; “their secret communications”

privy, secluded, secret

(adjective) hidden from general view or use; “a privy place to rest and think”; “a secluded romantic spot”; “a secret garden”

hidden, secret

(adjective) 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”

secret

(adjective) not open or public; kept private or not revealed; “a secret formula”; “secret ingredients”; “secret talks”

mystery, enigma, secret, closed book

(noun) something that baffles understanding and cannot be explained; “how it got out is a mystery”; “it remains one of nature’s secrets”

secret, arcanum

(noun) information known only to a special group; “the secret of Cajun cooking”

secret

(noun) 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”

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology

Noun

secret (countable and uncountable, plural secrets)

(countable) A piece of knowledge that is hidden and intended to be kept hidden. [from late 14th c.]

The key or principle by which something is made clear; the knack.

Something not understood or known.

(uncountable) Private seclusion.

(archaic, in the plural) The genital organs.

(historical) A form of steel skullcap.

(Christianity, often, in the plural) Any prayer spoken inaudibly and not aloud; especially, one of the prayers in the Mass, immediately following the "orate, fratres", said inaudibly by the celebrant.

Synonyms

• dern

Adjective

secret (comparative more secret, superlative most secret)

Being or kept hidden. [from late 14th c.]

(obsolete) Withdrawn from general intercourse or notice; in retirement or secrecy; secluded.

(obsolete) Faithful to a secret; not inclined to divulge or betray confidence; secretive, separate, apart.

(obsolete) Separate; distinct.

Synonyms

see hidden and covert

Antonyms

• overt

Verb

secret (third-person singular simple present secrets, present participle (US) secreting or (UK) secretting, simple past and past participle (US) secreted or (UK) secretted)

(transitive) To make or keep secret. [from late 16th c.]

(transitive) To hide secretly.

Usage notes

• All other dictionaries label this sense 'obsolete', but the citations above and on the citations page demonstrate recent usage as part of the idiom "secret [something] away".

• The present participle and past forms secreting and secreted are liable to confusion with the corresponding heteronymous forms of the similar verb secrete.

Anagrams

• Cretes, certes, erects, resect, terces

Source: Wiktionary


Se"cret, a. Etym: [F. secret (cf. Sp.& Pg. secreto, It. secreto, segreto), fr. L. secretus, p.p. of secrernere to put apart, to separate. See Certain, and cf. Secrete, Secern.]

1. Hidden; concealed; as, secret treasure; secret plans; a secret vow. Shak. The secret things belong unto the Lord our God; but those things which are revealed belong unto us. Deut. xxix. 29.

2. Withdraw from general intercourse or notice; in retirement or secrecy; secluded. There, secret in her sapphire cell, He with the NaĂŻs wont to dwell. Fenton.

3. Faithful to a secret; not inclined to divulge or betray confidence; secretive. [R.] Secret Romans, that have spoke the word, And will not palter. Shak.

4. Separate; distinct. [Obs.] They suppose two other divine hypostases superior thereunto, which were perfectly secret from matter. Cudworth.

Syn.

– Hidden; concealed; secluded; retired; unseen; unknown; private; obscure; recondite; latent; covert; clandestine; privy. See Hidden.

Se"cret, n. Etym: [F. secret (cf. Pr. secret, Sp. & Pg. secreto, It. secreto, segreto), from L. secretum. See Secret, a.]

1. Something studiously concealed; a thing kept from general knowledge; what is not revealed, or not to be revealed. To tell our secrets is often folly; to communicate those of others is treachery. Rambler.

2. A thing not discovered; what is unknown or unexplained; a mystery. All secrets of the deep, all nature's works. Milton

3. pl.

Definition: The parts which modesty and propriety require to be concealed; the genital organs. In secret, in a private place; in privacy or secrecy; in a state or place not seen; privately. Bread eaten in secret is pleasant. Prov. ix. 17.

Se"cret, v. t.

Definition: To keep secret. [Obs.] Bacon.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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