Secretary \Sec"re*ta*ry\, n.; pl. Secretaries. [F.
secr['e]taire (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.]
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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.
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That which is most of all profitable is acquaintance
with the secretaries, and employed men of
ambassadors. --Bacon.
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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.
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4. A piece of furniture, with conveniences for writing and
for the arrangement of papers; an escritoire.
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5. (Zool.) The secretary bird.
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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.
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Syn: See the Note under Clerk, n., 4.
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SECRETARY. An officer who, by order of his superior, writes letters and
other instruments. He is so called because he is possessed of the secrets of
his employer. This term wag used in France in 1343, and in England the term
secretary was first applied to the clerks of the king, who being always near
his person were called clerks of the secret, and in the reign of Henry VIII.
the term secretary of state came into it.
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Secretary, MD -- U.S. town in Maryland
Population (2000): 503
Housing Units (2000): 218
Land area (2000): 0.258731 sq. miles (0.670109 sq. km)
Water area (2000): 0.000000 sq. miles (0.000000 sq. km)
Total area (2000): 0.258731 sq. miles (0.670109 sq. km)
FIPS code: 70900
Located within: Maryland (MD), FIPS 24
Location: 38.609886 N, 75.949006 W
ZIP Codes (1990):
Note: some ZIP codes may be omitted esp. for suburbs.
Headwords:
Secretary, MD
Secretary
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