trade secret

noun

: something (such as a formula) which has economic value to a business because it is not generally known or easily discoverable by observation and for which efforts have been made to maintain secrecy

Examples of trade secret in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

On YouTube, Horton develops his audience by divulging trade secrets on film financing and marketing. —Cory Stillman, IndieWire, 10 Feb. 2025

John Harold Rogers, a former U.S. Federal Reserve official, has been accused of conspiring to steal Fed trade secrets to help China by the U.S. Justice Department. —Daniel R. Depetris, Newsweek, 1 Feb. 2025

Prosecutors allege that John Harold Rogers conspired with people in China to steal trade secrets from the Fed's Board of Governors and Open Market Committee and made false statements to the Federal Reserve inspector general. —Jacob Rosen, CBS News, 31 Jan. 2025

Confidential work or business info: Proprietary data, client details and trade secrets are all no-nos. —Kim Komando, USA TODAY, 26 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1825, in the meaning defined above

Legal Definition

trade secret

noun

trade se·​cret

: a formula, process, device, or item of information used by a business that has economic value because it is not generally known or easily discovered by observation or examination and for which reasonable efforts to maintain secrecy have been made

Note: Trade secrets are a form of intellectual property. Many states have enacted laws which create an action for damages or injunctive relief against misappropriation of trade secrets by improper means. Information contained in a patent is not protected as a trade secret.