- 1 a person who works in an office, working for another person, dealing with letters and telephone calls, typing, keeping records, arranging meetings with people, etc. a legal/medical secretary Please contact my secretary to make an appointment. see also private secretary Oxford Collocations Dictionary adjectiveexecutive, legal, medical, … See full entry See related entries: Business people, Professions
- 2 an official of a club, society, etc. who deals with writing letters, keeping records, and making business arrangements the membership secretary WordfinderclubAGM, the chair, club, hobby, member, newsletter, secretary, society, subscription, treasurer Oxford Collocations Dictionary adjectivechief, first, assistant, … verb + secretaryresign as, elect, elect somebody, … secretary + nounGeneral prepositionsecretary to phrasesthe post of secretary See full entry See related entries: Professions
- 3Secretary = Secretary of State see also Home Secretary, Permanent Undersecretary See related entries: Professions
- 4 (US English) the head of a government department, chosen by the President Secretary of the Treasury Oxford Collocations Dictionary adjectivedeputy, assistant, acting, … verb + secretaryresign as, replace (somebody as) prepositionsecretary for, secretary of phrasesSecretary of State See full entry See related entries: Professions
- 5 (in Britain) an assistant of a government minister, an ambassador, etc. see also undersecretary Oxford Collocations Dictionary adjectivepermanent, former, cabinet, … prepositionsecretary to phrasesSecretary of State See full entry See related entries: Professions Word Originlate Middle English (originally in the sense ‘person entrusted with a secret’): from late Latin secretarius ‘confidential officer’, from Latin secretum ‘secret’, neuter of secretus ‘separate, set apart’, from the verb secernere, from se- ‘apart’ + cernere ‘sift’.Extra examples UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon a former assistant secretary of defense assistant secretary of commerce under President Clinton deputy secretary of agriculture in the Bush administration former Treasury Secretary Lloyd Bentsen secretary to the Jockey Club the Financial Secretary to the Treasury the First Secretary of the Communist Party the Secretary for National Defence the Secretary of State for Education the Treasury Department’s Assistant Secretary for Economic Policy the United States Secretary of State the former Secretary of State for Energy, Cecil Parkinson Anyone interested in joining the society should contact membership secretary Bob Barwood. He became permanent secretary at the Department of Transport. He had talks with the Chief Secretary to the Treasury. Ms Watson is a former parliamentary secretary to the Minister of Education. She served as club secretary for 25 years.
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BrE BrE//ˈsekrətri//; NAmE NAmE//ˈsekrəteri//
(pl. secretaries) (abbreviation Sec.) Business people, ProfessionsCheck pronunciation: secretary
