Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

secretive

/ˈsiːkɹɪtɪv/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.26 in modern English

Syllables: se-cre-tive
IPA: /ˈsiːkɹɪtɪv/

14

Scrabble Score

9

Letters

3

Syllables

7

Unique Chars

Meaning

adj

Having an inclination to secrecy.

adj

Relating to secretion.

Example Sentences

"She's a secretive girl, not giving away much about her life."
"Why are you acting all secretive? What are you hiding?"
"Sitting back on a bench in the sunshine, Tom and I began to catch up with each other while the girls arranged their surprises at the remotest picnic table in the lay-by. Genial lorry drivers, munching wurst high in their cabs, looking down on their secretive toing and froing with interest."
"Donald Trump has lashed out against his own supporters, calling them gullible “weaklings” for questioning the transparency of a secretive government inquiry into the late high-profile socialite and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein."

Etymology

From Middle English secretife, equivalent to secret + -ive.

Origin

Source language: Middle English

Word Breakdown

Root: secretife
Suffix: secret

Inflected Forms

more secretive (comparative) most secretive (superlative)

Derived Forms

hypersecretive nonsecretive secretively secretiveness semisecretive supersecretive unsecretive

Synonyms

furtive sly close closelipped closemouthed tightlipped

Questions

How do you pronounce secretive?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈsiːkɹɪtɪv/.
What does secretive mean?: Having an inclination to secrecy.
Where does secretive come from?: It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce secretive

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “secretive”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈsiːkɹɪtɪv/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “secretive”.
Repeat and practice — Say “secretive” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.