secretary

/ˈsɛk.ɹə.tə.ɹi/

//ˈsɛk.ɹə.tə.ɹi// noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"secretary" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“secretary” has 14 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #1,206. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#1,206
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
14
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A person who keeps records, takes notes and handles general clerical work.

Corpus desk

Index EN-secretary · secretary · English

secretary · rank #1,206 · 14 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-COMMON #1,206
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 14 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH regular

Nearest frequency peer: regular (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “secretary”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “secretary” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

secretary vs secretly
78% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for secretary
PropertyValue
Headwordsecretary
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈsɛk.ɹə.tə.ɹi/
Letters9
Frequency rank#1,206
Misspellings tracked14
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “secretary”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).secretarylands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “regular” (#1,205), “sister” (#1,207), “product” (#1,204). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “secretary” is #1,206. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 14 spelling variants around secretary (IPA /ˈsɛk.ɹə.tə.ɹi/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #1,206 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 7 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 14 likely wrong-spelling variants for secretary, with forms such as "escretary", "sceretary", and "seccretary". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "secretly", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Medieval Latin secrētārius (“one entrusted with secrets”), from Latin secrētus (“private, secret”), past participle of secernere (“to separate, set apart”), from se- (“apart”) + cernere (“to separate”). The correct English form is secretary, spelled S-E-C-R-E-T-A-R-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    A person who keeps records, takes notes and handles general clerical work.
  2. 2
    The head of a department of government.
  3. 3
    A managerial or leading position in certain non-profit organizations, such as political parties, trade unions, international organizations.
  4. 4
    A type of desk, secretary desk; a secretaire.
  5. 5
    A secretary bird, a bird of the species Sagittarius serpentarius.
  6. 6
    Someone entrusted with a secret; a confidant.
  7. 7
    Someone employed as a scribe for personal correspondence.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how secretary appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. I have a personal secretary to help me organize my clients.
  2. The secretary at the school is in charge of communication between parents, students, and staff.

Etymology

From Medieval Latin secrētārius (“one entrusted with secrets”), from Latin secrētus (“private, secret”), past participle of secernere (“to separate, set apart”), from se- (“apart”) + cernere (“to separate”).

Synonyms

administratorassistantadministrative assistantamanuensisclerkscribescrivenerseneschal

This word in other languages

secretario(Español)secrétaire(Français)Sekretär(Deutsch)secretária(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • escretary
  • sceretary
  • seccretary
  • secertary
  • secreatry
  • secretarry
  • secretaryy
  • secretayr
  • secretray
  • secrettary
  • secrretary
  • secrteary
  • sercetary
  • ssecretary

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of secretary - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

escretary2sceretary2seccretary1secertary2secreatry2secretarry1secretaryy1secretayr2
Edit distance from "secretary"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "secretary"?
"secretary" is spelled S-E-C-R-E-T-A-R-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈsɛk.ɹə.tə.ɹi/.
What does "secretary" mean?
As a noun, "secretary" means: A person who keeps records, takes notes and handles general clerical work.
What words are commonly confused with "secretary"?
"secretary" is commonly confused with "secretly". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "secretary"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "secretary" is /ˈsɛk.ɹə.tə.ɹi/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "secretary"?
From Medieval Latin secrētārius (“one entrusted with secrets”), from Latin secrētus (“private, secret”), past participle of secernere (“to separate, set apart”), from se- (“apart”) + cernere (“to separate”). See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "secretary", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

generally#1,186insurance#1,226developed#1,183seriously#1,235

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (14 here; floor ≥5).

knowledge14 variantsAustralian14 variantsdirection14 variantscollection14 variants

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list