INDEX:
1. secret information/plans/places/activities
2. something that is secret
3. secret organizations and people who do secret work
4. to not tell other people about a secret
5. done secretly
6. behaving as if you have a secret
RELATED WORDS
to tell someone a secret : ↑ TELL
to take part in something secret : ↑ TAKE PART/BE INVOLVED (7)
thoughts and feelings you want to keep secret : ↑ PRIVATE
see also
↑ SPY
↑ KNOW/NOT KNOW
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1. secret information/plans/places/activities
▷ secret /ˈsiːkrɪt, ˈsiːkrət/ [adjective]
if something is secret, not many people know about it, and they agree not to tell anyone else about it :
▪ The letter was written in a secret code.
▪ Secret documents containing details of Britain’s defence plans have been stolen.
▪ The president’s schedule is secret, but there is speculation that he will visit UN troops in the area.
remain/stay secret
▪ I hope you see how vital it is that our conversation remains secret.
top secret
when an official document, piece of information etc is very secret
▪ The experiments were top secret.
secret ballot
a secret vote
▪ The Leader of the House will be selected by secret ballot.
▷ confidential /ˌkɒnfɪˈdenʃ ə l◂, ˌkɒnfəˈdenʃ ə l◂ǁˌkɑːn-/ [adjective]
confidential information is known only by a few official people, and must not be told to anyone else, for example because it contains military secrets or private details about people :
▪ We hold confidential records on each employee.
▪ Always protect confidential files by locking them with a password.
▪ An employee secretly gave confidential memos to the press.
highly confidential
very confidential
▪ The information we received is of a highly confidential nature and relates to national security.
▷ classified /ˈklæsɪfaɪd, ˈklæsəfaɪd/ [adjective]
classified information or documents are ones that the government has ordered to be kept secret :
▪ There is evidence that Huang had access to classified information.
▪ Only licensed companies are eligible to receive, store, or send classified material.
▷ sensitive /ˈsensɪtɪv, ˈsensətɪv/ [adjective]
information or documents that are sensitive are likely to cause problems or embarrassment if they are made public and therefore they are kept secret :
▪ A teenager used his personal computer to break into sensitive US Air Force files.
▪ Your competitors may have access to the company intranet, so never discuss commercially sensitive issues on-line.
highly sensitive
▪ The minister admitted that highly sensitive documents had been leaked to the press.
▷ covert /ˈkʌvəʳtˌ ˈkəʊvɜːʳt/ [adjective only before noun]
done secretly, especially by a government or official organization, often involving breaking the law :
▪ The chief investigator resigned, amid allegations of covert and probably illegal operations.
▪ The abuse of residents in the home was confirmed by covert video surveillance.
covertly [adverb]
▪ We’re able to operate covertly to monitor the situation.
▷ undercover /ˌʌndəʳˈkʌvəʳ◂/ [adjective usually before noun]
working secretly - use this about the activities of the police, the army etc :
▪ Six members of a drug-smuggling gang were arrested after an 18-month undercover police operation.
▪ The unit is equipped to deal with a variety of situations, including undercover surveillance.
undercover [adverb]
work/go undercover :
▪ Griffiths plays a New York police officer who goes undercover to investigate the murder of a young Jewish man.
▷ be veiled in secrecy/shrouded in secrecy/cloaked in secrecy /biː ˌveɪld ɪn ˈsiːkrəsi, ˌʃraʊdə̇d ɪn ˈsiːkrəsi, ˌkləʊkt ɪn ˈsiːkrəsi/ [verb phrase]
if something is veiled, cloaked, or shrouded in secrecy, very little is known about it and it seems very mysterious :
▪ In Japan, the private lives of the Emperor and his family were once veiled in secrecy.
▪ The President’s exact itinerary was cloaked in secrecy for security reasons.
▪ This ground-breaking work is shrouded in secrecy on the instruction of the company’s lawyers.
▷ hush-hush /ˌhʌʃ ˈhʌʃ◂ǁˈhʌʃ hʌʃ/ [adjective] informal
kept officially secret :
▪ His death was really hush-hush. It was so covered up that you wondered if it wasn’t a suicide.
▪ ‘The Manhattan Project’ was the insiders’ name for the hush-hush project.
▷ cloak-and-dagger /ˌkləʊk ən ˈdægəʳ/ [adjective only before noun]
use this about methods and activities that involve a lot of secrecy, especially when this seems unnecessary :
▪ He was arrested after a cloak-and-dagger operation involving the CIA and MI6.
2. something that is secret
▷ secret /ˈsiːkrɪt, ˈsiːkrət/ [countable noun]
something that you do not want other people to know about :
▪ I’m not supposed to be telling you this, it’s a secret.
▪ Only Jasper knew my secret.
tell somebody a secret
▪ Come over here, Luke wants to tell you a secret.
remain/stay a secret
▪ We lived in a small village and I knew that the news wouldn’t remain a secret for very long.
trade secret
information that a company keeps secret from other companies
▪ The task force will concentrate on stopping the theft of trade secrets.
state secret
information that a government keeps secret
▪ A scientist has been arrested for revealing state secrets concerning chemical weapons.
family secret
one that only some members of a family know about
▪ It’s one of those family secrets that we don’t talk about much.
a closely-guarded/well kept secret
one that is kept very secret
▪ His whereabouts are a closely-guarded secret.
the secret is out/the secret comes out
when people get to know something that was being kept secret
▪ Yes, the secret’s out I’m afraid. I’m to be a grandmother.
▷ skeleton in your cupboard British /skeleton in your closet American /ˌskelɪt ə n ɪn jɔːʳ ˈkʌbəʳd, ˌskelət ə n ɪn jɔːʳ ˈkʌbəʳd, ˌskelə̇t ə n ɪn jɔːʳ ˈklɒzə̇tǁ-ˈklɑːzə̇t/ [noun phrase]
a secret about yourself that you have kept hidden for a long time because you are ashamed or embarrassed about it :
▪ None of us is perfect -- we all have a little skeleton somewhere in the closet that we’d rather other people didn’t know about.
3. secret organizations and people who do secret work
▷ secret /ˈsiːkrɪt, ˈsiːkrət/ [adjective]
secret police/agent/society etc
:
▪ She was kept under surveillance by the secret police for over three years.
▪ The film tells the story of a Swiss secret agent who masquerades as a grocer in order to uncover a drugs ring.
▪ a senior member of the secret service
▷ underground /ˌʌndəʳˈgraʊnd◂/ [adjective/adverb]
underground organization/newspaper/movement etc
one that is secret and opposes the government, especially when it is too dangerous to do this publicly :
▪ Slowly, the underground resistance movement grew.
▪ Nearly 2,000 defeated fighters joined the underground Communist forces concealed in the Mekong delta.
▪ He was suspended from his job for writing an editorial in an underground paper.
go underground/be forced underground
become an underground organization
▪ In 1795, the United Irish Society went underground as a revolutionary movement.
▷ clandestine /klænˈdestɪn, klænˈdestən/ [adjective]
clandestine organization/force/operation etc
one that is secret, and usually illegal :
▪ The doctor was arrested after she was named as a member of a clandestine socialist movement.
▪ His clandestine meetings with PLO officials had been secretly recorded.
▷ undercover /ˌʌndəʳˈkʌvəʳ◂/ [adjective usually before noun]
undercover agent/police officer/investigator etc
one who works secretly for the police or government in order to catch criminals :
▪ He was arrested after trying to sell guns to an undercover FBI agent.
▪ People dived aside as undercover cops ambushed a planned post office raid.
4. to not tell other people about a secret
▷ not tell /nɒt ˈtel/ [verb phrase]
to not tell someone about something :
▪ I told you not to tell anyone!
▪ ‘Who’s that letter from?’ ‘I’m not telling you.’
not tell somebody what/how/why etc
▪ Henry wouldn’t tell me what the surprise was.
▪ Penny laughed, but she wouldn’t tell me why.
not tell about
▪ Vinny didn’t tell the police about his visit to Mahoney’s apartment.
▪ You’d better not tell Elizabeth about this.
not tell of
▪ Margaret had not yet told her sons of her planned engagement.
not tell (that)
▪ Carl felt I’d been deceiving him all these years by not telling him I was gay.
without telling somebody
▪ I was annoyed that he’d left without telling me.
▷ keep something secret /ˌkiːp something ˈsiːkrə̇t/ [verb phrase]
to not tell other people something, because you want it to remain secret :
▪ They wanted to keep their relationship secret for as long as possible.
▪ The graves were covered up in a deliberate attempt to keep the killings secret.
▪ So you’ve been keeping it secret all this time?
keep sth secret from
▪ Mary kept her illness secret, even from family members.
▷ can keep a secret /kən ˌkiːp ə ˈsiːkrə̇t/ [verb phrase]
someone who can keep a secret will not tell your secrets to other people, so you can trust them with secret information :
▪ Can you keep a secret?
▪ ‘Can I trust you?’ ‘I’m honest, and I can keep a secret’.
▷ keep quiet /kiːp ˈkwaɪət/ [verb phrase]
to deliberately not talk about something in public, especially something you are ashamed or embarrassed about :
▪ Parotti had threatened to expose the illegal arrangements unless he was paid $50,000 to keep quiet.
▪ Some people disagree with what the government is doing, but they keep quiet for fear of reprisals.
keep quiet about
▪ We used to keep quiet about some of the things that went on in the prison.
keep quiet over
▪ I think they should have kept quiet over that.
keep something quiet
keep something secret
▪ The minister denied that the case had been kept quiet or hidden.
keep somebody quiet
do something to stop someone telling a secret
▪ She’d been brutally murdered to keep her quiet.
▷ keep something from /ˈkiːp something frɒm/ [transitive phrasal verb]
to deliberately not tell someone about something, especially because you think they would be upset if they knew the truth :
▪ Edward never told anyone about his illness. He even tried to keep it from his wife.
▪ The president has a reputation for keeping key decisions from even his closest aides.
▪ She tried in every way to keep the truth from her parents.
▷ keep something under wraps /ˌkiːp something ʌndəʳ ˈræps/ [verb phrase]
to not allow people to know about something that has been officially planned or decided :
be kept under wraps
▪ It’s been suggested the report was kept under wraps to avoid controversy.
▪ Ford’s new range of cars is being kept firmly under wraps until the Geneva auto show.
▷ discretion /dɪˈskreʃ ə n/ [uncountable noun]
the ability to judge when you should or should not tell people things that you know about someone or something :
▪ Absolute discretion is required from everyone working for the Royal Family.
leave something to somebody’s discretion
▪ I leave it to your discretion as to whether you should tell your colleagues.
show/exercise discretion
▪ TV commentators have shown great discretion, glossing over the problems in her personal life.
▪ Can junior managers be trusted to exercise discretion when making decisions?
be the (very) soul of discretion
be the sort of person who will never tell something that should be kept secret
▪ You can tell Martin anything -- he’s the very soul of discretion.
▷ secrecy /ˈsiːkrɪsi, ˈsiːkrəsi/ [uncountable noun]
when what someone does or says is kept very secret, so that only a few people know about it :
▪ There is a great deal of secrecy within the organization.
▪ Why all the secrecy? You’ve got nothing to be ashamed of.
utmost secrecy
▪ Our commanding officer emphasized the need to maintain the utmost secrecy about the operation at all times.
swear somebody to secrecy
make someone promise that they will not tell other people a secret
▪ Anna swore me to secrecy on the subject of her family until her book came out.
a veil/shroud/cloak of secrecy
▪ The gunmen tracked down their target, despite the shroud of secrecy surrounding his whereabouts.
▷ confidentiality /ˌkɒnfɪdenʃiˈæləti, ˌkɒnfədenʃiˈælətiǁˌkɑːn-/ [uncountable noun]
the trust that exists between people who share secrets, especially between a professional person such as a doctor or lawyer and someone who gives them private advice :
▪ Alexander declined to comment, citing attorney--client confidentiality.
▪ Researchers should always be able to guarantee complete confidentiality for their subjects.
▪ Data encryption ensures the privacy and confidentiality of email messages.
breach/violate confidentiality
to break confidentiality by telling someone a secret
▪ The health clinic has again been caught violating patient confidentiality.
breach of confidentiality
▪ You doctor should not have told your parents about the abortion -- that was a blatant breach of confidentiality.
5. done secretly
▷ secretly/in secret/in secrecy /ˈsiːkrɪtli, ˈsiːkrətli, ɪn ˈsɪːkrə̇t, ɪn ˈsiːkrəsi/ [adverb]
done without anyone else knowing :
▪ Many civilians were secretly killed and buried by soldiers.
▪ My parents didn’t approve of our relationship, and we had to meet in secret.
▪ Operating in secrecy, intelligence agencies are often seen as mysterious and unaccountable for their actions.
▷ on the quiet /ɒn ðə ˈkwaɪət/ [adverb]
if you do something on the quiet, you do it secretly, especially because you think that people will disapprove of what you are doing :
▪ His doctor has told him he mustn’t drink, but he still has the occasional brandy on the quiet.
▪ He used to flirt with the two girls, on the quiet, when his wife wasn’t looking.
▷ behind closed doors /bɪˌhaɪnd kləʊzd ˈdɔːʳz/ [adverb]
if important official meetings, discussions, or decisions take place behind closed doors, they take place secretly without the public being allowed to see or hear them :
▪ The board members met behind closed doors to discuss the deal.
▪ Although America is a democracy, a lot of key decisions are made behind closed doors by unelected advisers.
▷ in private/privately /ɪn ˈpraɪvə̇t, ˈpraɪvə̇tli/ [adverb]
if you do something in private or privately, you do it where other people cannot see or hear you :
▪ Can I have a word with you in private?
▪ Although party officials give the President their public support, many are saying in private that he may have to resign.
▪ Generations of Native American children in state schools were punished for speaking their own language, even privately.
▷ behind somebody’s back /bɪˌhaɪnd somebodyˈs ˈbæk/ [adverb]
if you do something or say something unpleasant about someone behind their back, you do or say it without telling them :
▪ I thought you were my friend. Now I find you’ve been talking about me behind my back.
▪ People laughed at him behind his back.
▪ He agrees with his boss to his face, but then criticizes him behind his back.
go behind somebody’s back
▪ I’m not happy about you going behind my back like that. You should have told me.
▷ surreptitiously /ˌsʌrəpˈtɪʃəsli/ [adverb]
if you do something surreptitiously, you do it while other people are not looking because you do not want them to see you doing it :
▪ She glanced surreptitiously up at the clock.
▪ I found myself studying his face surreptitiously.
▪ Greenpeace claim that toxic waste has been dumped surreptitiously on west coast beaches.
▷ furtively /ˈfɜːʳtɪvli/ [adverb]
if you do something furtively, you do it in a way which makes you look as if you are keeping something secret, especially something wrong that you have done :
▪ She looked around furtively to make sure no one was watching.
▪ The older boys hovered furtively outside the school gates, clutching thinly rolled cigarettes.
6. behaving as if you have a secret
▷ secretive /ˈsiːkrɪtɪv, ˈsiːkrətɪv, sɪˈkriːtɪv/ [adjective]
unwilling to let other people know what you are doing, or to give them information about yourself :
▪ Years of living alone had made her secretive and unwilling to trust anyone.
▪ Why did Stephen always have to be so secretive in his business dealings?
▪ Much of the discussion focused upon North Korea’s highly secretive nuclear program.
secretive about
▪ Kath’s very secretive about her past, isn’t she?
▷ cagey /ˈkeɪdʒi/ [adjective] informal
unwilling to tell people definitely what your plans, intentions, or opinions are - use this especially when you cannot think of a good reason for someone doing this :
▪ He gets very cagey whenever I ask him about his job.
cagey about
▪ She’s very cagey about what she spends her money on, don’t you think?
play it cagey
American
▪ Coach Bob Dwyer is playing it cagey over his choice of a replacement skipper.
▷ play your cards close to your chest British /play your cards close to your vest American /pleɪ jɔːʳ ˌkɑːʳdz kləʊs tə jɔːʳ ˈtʃest, pleɪ jɔːʳ ˌkɑːʳdz kləʊs tə jɔːʳ ˈvest/ [verb phrase]
if someone plays their cards close to their chest or vest, they do not allow other people to know what they are planning to do next :
▪ Roslin, known for playing his cards close to his vest, declined to comment.
▷ furtive /ˈfɜːʳtɪv/ [adjective]
someone who is furtive or behaves in a furtive way looks as though they are keeping something secret, especially something wrong that they have done :
▪ His movements were quick and furtive, and he spoke in a whisper.
▪ Miss Baggely appeared unconfident, almost furtive.
▪ The two girls exchanged furtive glances across the dinner table and tried hard not to giggle.
▷ secret /ˈsiːkrɪt, ˈsiːkrət/ [adjective only before noun]
doing something only in secret, so that other people do not know you are doing it :
▪ I actually think he’s probably a secret Republican voter.
▪ He hid the fact that he was a secret drinker from his employees for many years.
▷ closet /ˈklɒzɪt, ˈklɒzətǁˈklɑː-, ˈklɔː-/ [adjective]
closet alcoholic/homosexual/communist etc
one who is secretly an alcoholic, homosexual etc :
▪ He finally came out in 1998, after years as a closet homosexual.