secret

How to use secret in a sentence. Example sentences and definitions for secret.

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Editorial note

You can't have secret back doors for internal apps to get special priority access, not for ANY reason.

Examples7

Definitions14

Parts of speech2

Quick take

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"

Meaning at a glance

The clearest senses and uses of secret gathered in one view.

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"

noun

information known only to a special group; "the secret of Cajun cooking"

noun

something that baffles understanding and cannot be explained; "how it got out is a mystery"; "it remains one of nature's secrets"

Definitions

Core meanings and parts of speech for 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"

noun

information known only to a special group; "the secret of Cajun cooking"

noun

something that baffles understanding and cannot be explained; "how it got out is a mystery"; "it remains one of nature's secrets"

adjective

not open or public; kept private or not revealed; "a secret formula"; "secret ingredients"; "secret talks"

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"

adjective

not openly made known; "a secret marriage"; "a secret bride"

adjective

communicated covertly; "their secret signal was a wink"; "secret messages"

adjective

not expressed; "secret (or private) thoughts"

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"

adjective

hidden from general view or use; "a privy place to rest and think"; "a secluded romantic spot"; "a secret garden"

adjective

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

adjective

indulging only covertly; "a secret alcoholic"

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"

See also: mysterious, mystic, mystical, occult, orphic

adjective

the next to highest level of official classification for documents

Example sentences

You can't have secret back doors for internal apps to get special priority access, not for ANY reason.

We have never shipped a release with a secret bug or anything remotely close to that and then secretly told certain clients.

Most of the time the reporters overstate the research, the scientists keep the data secret, and the general public is left scratching their heads.

I really, really hope the culture of leaking information becomes so strong that governments will become incapable of keeping anything a secret.

A secret police that collects everyone's metadata and uses it to investigate suspicious activity.

One can open-source his own works as a matter of commitment to the idea that all information ought to be free or for any other reason but that doesn't mean the law ought to abrogate protections for proprietary, trade secret information that most businesses need to keep confidential information as a matter of competitive advantage.

If the US is nowhere near being an authoritarian police state, at what point will US become a authoritarian police state?When they have kill lists without any trial, jury or judge?When they keep prisoners in jail indefinitely without a trial?When they torture prisoners?When state officials lie to the public?When state officials lie to public representatives?When the secret police interfere with lawyers communications and interferes with legal cases?When the secret police silence individuals that want to inform about abuse?When the secret police use surveillance for blackmailing?When the state use strip searches and surveillance indiscriminately against the population, including children?When the state implement state censorship?When they use force against peaceful demonstrators?When they utilize military resources against peaceful demonstrators?When they seize bank assets without any trial, any intention of a trial, or even without ever formally serving the individual with criminal papers?Please state what criteria we should use, so we can have a final definition of what an authoritarian police state is.

Frequently asked questions

Short answers drawn from the clearest meanings and examples for this word.

How do you use secret in a sentence?

You can't have secret back doors for internal apps to get special priority access, not for ANY reason.

What does secret mean?

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"