1A sensitive issue or piece of information which is kept secret by the government.
protest was silenced and pollution was as much a state secret as the ammunition stocks
Example sentencesExamples
Provider of unauthorised access to personal data or a state secret, along with the disclosure of a user password will serve between one to three years' imprisonment.
People convicted of deliberately leaking state secrets could face jail terms of three to 10 years.
It is no state secret that the selection convention in Castlebar was somewhat unusual to say the least.
Actual death penalty statistics are a closely guarded state secret.
Its contents continue to be a heavily guarded state secret.
1.1humorous An important and closely guarded piece of information.
her marriage was on the rocks, which was hardly a state secret at the time
Example sentencesExamples
She also owns an iPod, although her playlist is a closely-guarded state secret.
Definition of state secret in US English:
state secret
noun
1A sensitive issue or piece of information that is kept secret by the government, usually to protect the public.
Example sentencesExamples
Actual death penalty statistics are a closely guarded state secret.
It is no state secret that the selection convention in Castlebar was somewhat unusual to say the least.
People convicted of deliberately leaking state secrets could face jail terms of three to 10 years.
Its contents continue to be a heavily guarded state secret.
Provider of unauthorised access to personal data or a state secret, along with the disclosure of a user password will serve between one to three years' imprisonment.
1.1humorous A piece of information, usually of a trivial or personal nature, that is closely guarded and desired to be kept private.
she thought her affair with the boss was a state secret, but we all giggled about it behind her back
Example sentencesExamples
She also owns an iPod, although her playlist is a closely-guarded state secret.