- a person who works in an office, working for another person, dealing with mail and phone calls, keeping records, arranging meetings with people, etc.
- a legal/medical secretary
- the mayor's press secretary
- Please contact my secretary to make an appointment.
- secretary to somebody/something He is secretary to the board of governors.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- executive
- legal
- medical
- …
- an official of a club, society, etc. who deals with mail, keeping records and making business arrangements
- the membership secretary
- She served as club secretary for 25 years.
- The union's branch secretary said he hoped a solution would be found.
- secretary to somebody/something secretary to the Jockey Club
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- chief
- first
- assistant
- …
- resign as
- elect
- elect somebody
- …
- General
- secretary to
- the post of secretary
- Secretary(also Secretary of State)(in the UK) the head of an important government department see also Foreign Secretary, Home SecretaryTopics Politicsb2
- (in the US) the head of a government department, chosen by the president
- Secretary of the Treasury
- She was deputy secretary of agriculture.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- deputy
- assistant
- acting
- …
- resign as
- replace (somebody as)
- secretary for
- secretary of
- Secretary of State
- (in the UK) an assistant of a government minister, an ambassador, etc.
- Ms Watson is a former parliamentary secretary to the Minister of Education.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- permanent
- former
- cabinet
- …
- secretary to
- Secretary of State
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’.
Check pronunciation:
secretary