silent, taciturn, reticent, reserved, secretive mean showing restraint in speaking. silent implies a habit of saying no more than is needed.
the strong, silent type taciturn implies a temperamental disinclination to speech and usually connotes unsociability.
taciturn villagers reticent implies a reluctance to speak out or at length, especially about one's own affairs.
was reticent about his plans reserved implies reticence and suggests the restraining influence of caution or formality in checking easy informal conversational exchange.
greetings were brief, formal, and reservedsecretive, too, implies reticence but usually carries a suggestion of deviousness and lack of frankness or of an often ostentatious will to conceal.
the secretive research and development division
Examples of secretive in a Sentence
He's very secretive about his work.
the intelligence agency remained secretive despite the media's demands for more openness in government
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'secretive.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.