Definify.com
Webster 1913 Edition
Secretary
Sec′re-ta-ry
,Noun.
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
, Adj.
Noun.
1.
One who keeps, or is intrusted with, secrets.
[R.]
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.
That which is most of all profitable is acquaintance with the
secretaries
, and employed men of ambassadors. Bacon.
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.4.
A piece of furniture, with conveniences for writing and for the arrangement of papers; an escritoire.
5.
(Zool.)
The secretary bird.
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
.
Syn. – See the Note under , 4.
Clerk
, Noun.
Webster 1828 Edition
Secretary
SEC'RETARY
,Noun.
1. A person employed by a public body, by a company or by an individual, to write orders, letters, dispatches, public or private papers, and the like. Thus ligislative bodies have secretaries, whose business is to record all their laws and resolves. Embassadors have secretaries.
2. An officer whose business is to superintend and manage the affairs of a particular department of government; as the secretary of state, who conducts correspondence of a state with foreign courts: the secretary of the treasury, who manages the department of finance; the secretary of war, of the navy, &c.
Definition 2024
Secretary
secretary
secretary
See also: Secretary
English
Noun
secretary (plural secretaries)
- (obsolete) Someone entrusted with a secret; a confidant.
- A person who keeps records, takes notes and handles general clerical work.
- (often capitalized) The head of a department of government.
- A managerial or leading position in certain non-profit organizations, such as political parties, trade unions, international organizations.
- Ban Ki-Moon is the current secretary general of the United Nations.
- (US) A type of desk, secretary desk; a secretaire.
- A secretary bird, a bird of the species Sagittarius serpentarius.
Derived terms
- secretary bird
- secretary desk
Related terms
Translations
person keeping records and handling clerical work
|
|
head of a department of government
|
|
leading or managerial position in certain organizations
type of desk
|
|
sagittarius serpentarius
|
|
Verb
secretary (third-person singular simple present secretaries, present participle secretarying, simple past and past participle secretaried)
- (transitive) To serve as a secretary of.
Quotations
- For usage examples of this term, see Citations:secretary.