secondary school
1248
higher study later. Although most children to go COMPREHEN-
SIVE schools now, there are still some secondary modern
schools. → compare COMPREHENSIVE, GRAMMAR SCHOOL
'secondary ,school n a school for children between the
ages of 11 and 16 or 18, above the level of PRIMARY education
→ compare PRIMARY SCHOOL, COMPREHENSIVE, GRAMMAR
SCHOOL, SECONDARY MODERN; see Feature on page A12
,secondary 'stress also ,secondary 'accent n [C;U] tech
the next-to-strongest STRESS (=force) given in speech to part
of a word or compound, and shown in this dictionary by
the mark ˌ
,second 'base n 1 the base in BASEBALL which must be
touched second by a BATTER trying to make a RUN 2 also
second baseman — the person who defends the area
around the second base
,second 'best adj not as good as the best: my second-best
trousers | The shop didn't have quite what we wanted so we
had to settle for second best. | England came off second best
(=were defeated) in the big football match.
,second 'childhood n [S] euph the period when an old
person's mind becomes weak and childish; DOTAGE
,second 'class n 1 [U] a class of mail a) (in Britain) in
which letters and parcels are delivered less quickly than by
FIRST CLASS: I sent it second class. b) (in the US and Canada)
for newspapers and magazines 2 [U] the travelling condi-
tions which are cheaper than FIRST CLASS, especially on a
train: We're travelling second class. 3 [C] fml for SECOND
second-class adj 1 below the highest standard; INFERIOR:
Why should women be treated as second-class citizens? 2
[A] of, for, or being second class: a second-class stamp/ticket
,Second 'Coming, the also the Second Advent the
time when, according to Christian belief, Jesus Christ will
return to earth from heaven on the last day, in order to
judge people and decide whether they have been good or
bad during their lives → see also JUDGMENT DAY
,second 'cousin n the child of one's parent's COUSIN
'second-degree adj [A] (of a burn) of the next-to-highest
level of seriousness; less serious than THIRD-DEGREE
,second-'guess v [T] AmE infml 1 to make a judgment about
(someone or something) only afterwards, when an event has
already taken place 2 to try to say in advance what (some-
one) will do, how (something) will happen etc
'second ,hand n the pointer that shows seconds on a clock
or watch
,second-'hand¹ adj, adv 1 owned or used by someone else
before; not new: a second-hand car | I got this book second-
hand. 2 (learnt) from someone or something other than the
point of origin: It was a second-hand report, based on what
his friends had told him. → compare FIRST-HAND
second-hand² adj [A] dealing in second-hand goods: a
second-hand shop
,second-in-com'mand n a person, especially a military
officer, next in rank below the commander or director
,second 'language n a language which a person speaks in
addition to the one they learned as a child, especially when
used frequently and well: She was born in Greece and came to
Britain when she was 12, so English is her second language.
,second lieu'tenant n a military rank → see TABLE 3
sec·ond·ly /'sekəndli/ adv as the second of a set of facts,
reasons etc; SECOND: First I need your name and address.
Secondly, what's your date of birth?
,second 'nature n [U] a very firmly fixed habit: It's second
nature for me to get up early (=I always do it) even though I'm
retired now.
,second 'person n [the S] a form of a verb or PRONOUN that
is used to show the person spoken to: 'You' is a second person
pronoun. | 'You are' is the second person plural of 'to be'. →
compare FIRST PERSON, THIRD PERSON
,second-'rate adj of low quality; INFERIOR: a second-rate film
→ compare FIRST-RATE
,second 'reading n the second reading out of a suggested
new law in parliament → see Cultural Note at BILL
sec·onds /'sekəndz/ n [P] infml an additional serving of food
at a meal; a second HELPING: He asked for seconds.
,second 'sight n [U] the ability to see or know about future
or far-away things
,second-'string adj [A] being one who sometimes comes in
to take the place of another in a team, group etc, rather than
being a regular member → compare FIRST-STRING
,second 'thought n [C;U] a thought that à usually past
decision or opinion may not be right: I said I wouldn't do it,
but on second thoughts (BrE) || on second thought (AmE) I
think I will. | We'd decided to sell our house, but then we began
to have second thoughts. | He'd betray his own mother without
a second thought.
second wind /ˌsekənd 'wɪnd/ n [S] the return of one's
strength during hard physical activity, when it seemed that
one had become too tired to continue: (fig.) She was strug-
gling with the new job at first, but now she's got her second
wind she's doing very well.
,Second ,World 'War, the → see WORLD WAR II
se·cre·cy /'si:krəsi/ n [U] 1 the practice of keeping secrets:
Secrecy is important to our plans. | I have been sworn to
secrecy (=made to promise that I will not tell anyone) about
this. 2 the state of being secret: The plan was shrouded in
secrecy. (=kept very secret)
se·cret¹ /'si:krɪt/ adj 1 [(from)] that other people are pre-
vented from knowing about: These plans must be kept secret
(from our competitors). | We discovered a secret passage behind
the wall. | a secret rendezvous → see also TOP-SECRET 2 [A]
(of a person) not known by others to be the stated thing:
John is a secret admirer of Helen, though he has never
spoken to her. 3 [F(about)] careful in keeping secrets; SECRETIVE
—ly adv: They were secretly married last week.
secret² n 1 [C] something kept hidden or known only to a
few people: Our plan must remain a secret. | He has no secrets
from me; he tells me everything. | Can you keep (=not tell) a
secret? | closely-guarded/dark secrets → see also OPEN
SECRET 2 [C] something unexplained; mystery: the secret of
how life on earth began 3 [S] a single or most important
means of gaining a good result: What's the secret of baking
perfect bread? (=How do you do it?) 4 in secret in a private
way or place; unknown to (most) others: They met in secret
to discuss the arrangements.
,secret 'agent n a person gathering information secretly or
doing secret jobs, especially for a foreign government; SPY
sec·re·tar·i·al /ˌsekrə'tɪəriəl/ adj of or for (the work of) a
secretary: a secretarial college (=teaching people to be secre-
taries)
sec·re·ta·ri·at /ˌsekrə'tɪəriət/ n [C+sing./pl. v] an official
office or department with a SECRETARY or especially
SECRETARY-GENERAL as its head: the United Nations Secre-
tariat in New York
Secretariat a horse which won many US horse races
sec·re·ta·ry /'sekrətəri/ n 1 a person with the job of
typing letters, keeping records, arranging meetings etc, for
someone: She got a job as personal secretary to the company
chairman. | His secretary says he's still out at lunch. | a
good/efficient secretary 2 a government official, such as a)
(in Britain) a minister (Secretary of State), or a high non-
elected official (the Permanent Secretary) in a department:
the Home/Foreign Secretary | the Secretary of State for Home/
Foreign Affairs b) (in the US) a non-elected head of a large
department: the Secretary of the Treasury | the Secretary of
State (=dealing with foreign affairs) c) a government repre-
sentative below the rank of AMBASSADOR: the First/Second/
Third Secretary at the British Embassy 3 an official of an
organization who keeps records, writes official letters etc: the
Honorary Secretary of the Golf Club | the General Secretary of
the Trades Union Congress
CULTURAL NOTE In the US and UK, secretaries are often
women. The STEREOTYPE of a secretary is of a pretty
young woman who is very concerned about her
appearance, and who spends a lot of time talking to her
friends on the telephone and filing (FILE²) her nails. People
often joke about married male employers having sexual
relationships with their secretaries.
,secretary-'general n (sometimes cap.) the chief official in