secret

secret — noun

1. information that you know but do not want other people to find out, because it i

1.nounA2
Definition

information that you know but do not want other people to find out, because it is private or sharing it could cause problems

Example

Shirin told Nikhil a secret and made him promise not to share it with anyone.

tell + secret + promise not to share

The hospital keeps all patient medical records a strictly guarded secret.

collocation: strictly guarded secret

Common collocations
  • tell a secret
  • keep a secret
  • share a secret
  • let a secret slip
  • a closely guarded secret
  • a dark secret
  • a family secret
Synonyms
  • confidence

    more formal; usually in the phrase 'in confidence' or 'in strict confidence'

  • classified information

    specifically about government/military secrets with legal protection

  • private matter

    broader; something personal but not necessarily intentionally hidden

Antonyms

Grammar Patterns

tell someone a secret

keep something a secret

in secret

Usage Note

Frequently used in fixed collocations: tell a secret, keep a secret, let a secret slip, share a secret. The uncountable form appears in the phrase in secret, meaning 'in a hidden or private way' — for example, They met in secret.

Common Mistakes

I will keep it as a secret.
I will keep it a secret.
The verb keep does not take 'as' before a secret.
She told a secret for me.
She told me a secret.
In English, you 'tell someone a secret,' not 'tell a secret for someone.'

2. a truth about something that most people do not know or understand, often someth

2.nounB1
Definition

a truth about something that most people do not know or understand, often something mysterious or not yet discovered

Example

The secrets of the ancient temple have fascinated historians for over a century.

collocation: secrets of [mysterious subject]

No one knows the secret of how the huge stone blocks crossed the desert.

Common collocations
  • secrets of the universe
  • secrets of nature
  • unlock the secrets of
  • reveal the secret of
  • hold secrets
Synonyms
  • mystery

    emphasises that something is puzzling or unexplainable

  • enigma

    more formal or literary; something that is very difficult to understand

  • puzzle

    a problem or question that needs solving

Antonyms

Grammar Patterns

the secrets of + noun

holds secrets

unlock the secrets of

Usage Note

This sense emphasises the mystery aspect — something that is not yet understood. Often used in the plural (the secrets of the universe). Distinguished from sense 1 by scope: sense 2 is about unknown truths that belong to a field or place, not personal private information.

Common Mistakes

The secret of the magician's trick is still unknown to anyone.' (when you mean 'mystery')
How the magician performed the trick remains a mystery.
For unexplained phenomena, mystery is preferred when no person is actively hiding the information.

3. the special knowledge, method, or skill that makes someone very good at a partic

3.nounB1
Definition

the special knowledge, method, or skill that makes someone very good at a particular activity — for example, the secret ingredient in a chef's sauce or the reason a teacher can keep a class calm

Example

Lucas says the secret to good bread is letting dough rest for a full day.

pattern: the secret to + [noun]

The company protects its drink recipe as a trade secret known only to two employees.

collocation: trade secret

Common collocations
  • the secret to success
  • trade secret
  • secret ingredient
  • secret formula
  • family secret
Synonyms
  • key

    emphasises that this is the most important factor for success

  • formula

    a fixed method or set of steps that produces a result

  • technique

    a practical skill or method in a particular activity

Grammar Patterns

the secret to + noun/gerund

the secret for + noun/gerund

Usage Note

Typically follows the pattern the secret to + noun or gerund (the secret to good coffee, the secret to losing weight). When referring to a company's protected formula or process, trade secret is the standard collocation and is a legal term.

Common Mistakes

He told me the secret for the pasta.
He told me the secret to the perfect pasta dish.
The usual pattern is secret to + result, not secret for + object.
Idioms

open secret

idiom

something that is supposed to be a secret but is actually known by many people

It is an open secret in the office that the manager is planning to leave next month.

The affair between the two politicians was an open secret among journalists for years.

top secret

idiom

the highest level of secrecy, used especially for government or military information that could endanger national security if revealed

The documents were marked top secret and locked in a special safe in the basement.

Only four government officials knew the top secret location of the emergency shelter.

secret — adjective

Word family

  • secretly
    adverbB1
  • secrecy
    nounB1
  • secretive
    adjectiveB2
  • secretively
    adverbC1
  • secretiveness
    nounC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

All five words describe something that is not shared openly, but they differ in context and connotation. Secret is the everyday word — it simply means deliberately hidden from others (a secret hiding place). Confidential suggests information shared in a position of trust, especially in business or professional settings (a confidential report seen only by executives). Covert describes actions or operations that are intentionally hidden, often in military or intelligence contexts (a covert police operation). Classified refers specifically to official government secrets with regulated access levels (classified military documents that require security clearance). Private is the broadest term — it describes anything not meant for the public, from personal thoughts to property, without necessarily implying intentional concealment (a private conversation between two friends). For example, a private diary is simply personal, while a secret diary is deliberately hidden from others.

confidential ↗covertclassified ↗private ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • secrecy
  • secretiveness

Adverbs

Phrases

  • keep something secret
  • remain a secret

Prepositions

  • in secret
  • about (a secret)

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

Secret comes from the Latin word 'secretus', meaning 'separated' or 'set apart.' The Romans formed it by combining 'se-' (meaning 'apart' or 'without') with 'cernere' (meaning 'to separate' or 'to distinguish'). The idea was that a secret was something separated from general knowledge. French adopted the word as 'secret', and English borrowed it from French in the Middle Ages. The related word 'secretary' originally meant a person entrusted with secrets.