a. [ F. secret (cf. Sp. & Pg. secreto, It. secreto, segreto), fr. L. secretus, p. p. of secernere to put apart, to separate. See Certain, and cf. Secrete, Secern. ] 1. Hidden; concealed; as, secret treasure; secret plans; a secret vow. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

The secret things belong unto the Lord our God; but those things which are revealed belong unto us. Deut. xxix. 29. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Withdrawn from general intercourse or notice; in retirement or secrecy; secluded. [ 1913 Webster ]

There, secret in her sapphire cell,
He with the Nais wont to dwell. Fenton. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Faithful to a secret; not inclined to divulge or betray confidence; secretive. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Secret Romans, that have spoke the word,
And will not palter. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. Separate; distinct. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

They suppose two other divine hypostases superior thereunto, which were perfectly secret from matter. Cudworth. [ 1913 Webster ]

Syn. -- Hidden; concealed; secluded; retired; unseen; unknown; private; obscure; recondite; latent; covert; clandestine; privy. See Hidden. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ 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. [ 1913 Webster ]

To tell our own secrets is often folly; to communicate those of others is treachery. Rambler. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A thing not discovered; what is unknown or unexplained; a mystery. [ 1913 Webster ]

All secrets of the deep, all nature's works. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. pl. The parts which modesty and propriety require to be concealed; the genital organs. [ 1913 Webster ]

In secret, in a private place; in privacy or secrecy; in a state or place not seen; privately. [ 1913 Webster ]

Bread eaten in secret is pleasant. Prov. ix. 17. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To keep secret. [ Obs. ] Bacon. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. ] A process in which mercury, or some of its salts, is employed to impart the property of felting to certain kinds of furs. Ure. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Of or pertaining to a secretary; befitting a secretary. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Secretarial, diplomatic, or other official training. Carlyle. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } n. [ F. secrétariat. ] The office of a secretary; the place where a secretary transacts business, keeps records, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.; pl. Secretaries [ F. secrétaire (cf. Pr. secretari, Sp. & Pg. secretario, It. secretario, segretario) LL. secretarius, originally, a confidant, one intrusted with secrets, from L. secretum a secret. See Secret, a. & n. ] 1. One who keeps, or is intrusted with, secrets. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A person employed to write orders, letters, dispatches, public or private papers, records, and the like; an official scribe, amanuensis, or writer; one who attends to correspondence, and transacts other business, for an association, a public body, or an individual. [ 1913 Webster ]

That which is most of all profitable is acquaintance with the secretaries, and employed men of ambassadors. Bacon. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. An officer of state whose business is to superintend and manage the affairs of a particular department of government, and who is usually a member of the cabinet or advisory council of the chief executive; as, the secretary of state, who conducts the correspondence and attends to the relations of a government with foreign courts; the secretary of the treasury, who manages the department of finance; the secretary of war, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. A piece of furniture, with conveniences for writing and for the arrangement of papers; an escritoire. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. (Zool.) The secretary bird. [ 1913 Webster ]

Secretary bird. [ So called in allusion to the tufts of feathers at the back of its head, which were fancifully thought to resemble pens stuck behind the ear. ] (Zool.) A large long-legged raptorial bird (Gypogeranus serpentarius), native of South Africa, but now naturalized in the West Indies and some other tropical countries. It has a powerful hooked beak, a crest of long feathers, and a long tail. It feeds upon reptiles of various kinds, and is much prized on account of its habit of killing and devouring snakes of all kinds. Called also serpent eater. [ 1913 Webster ]

Syn. -- See the Note under Clerk, n., 4. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The office, or the term of office, of a secretary. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Secreted; p. pr. & vb. n. Secreting. ] [ L. secretus separated, secret, hidden, p. p. of secernere. See Secret, and cf. Discrete, Discreet. ] 1. To deposit in a place of hiding; to hide; to conceal; as, to secrete stolen goods; to secrete one's self. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Physiol.) To separate from the blood and elaborate by the process of secretion; to elaborate and emit as a secretion. See Secretion. [ 1913 Webster ]

Why one set of cells should secrete bile, another urea, and so on, we do not know. Carpenter. [ 1913 Webster ]

Syn. -- To conceal; hide. See Conceal. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. secretio: cf. F. sécrétion. ] 1. The act of secreting or concealing; as, the secretion of dutiable goods. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Physiol.) The act of secreting; the process by which material is separated from the blood through the agency of the cells of the various glands and elaborated by the cells into new substances so as to form the various secretions, as the saliva, bile, and other digestive fluids. The process varies in the different glands, and hence are formed the various secretions. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Physiol.) Any substance or fluid secreted, or elaborated and emitted, as the gastric juice. [ 1913 Webster ]