secretaire

Examples

• All

• Aurelia rose from the sofa and walked slowly across the room to a small satinwood secretaire that stood between two of the long windows.

• Claudia is writing at a secretaire.

  Fiction book (1994)

• He even tried destroying his diploma, which Faiza snatched from him at the last moment and hid in her French secretaire that resembled a pregnant woman on beagle legs.

  Fiction book (1993)

• At the Fondation Monet in Giverny, I'm grateful for the generous assistance of Claudette Lindsey, secretaire generale, and Aurore Pain, her assistant.

  Academic text (2015)

• Claudia is writing at a secretaire with its hinged writing surface open.

Synonyms

S

secretary

vssecretaire

• Archaic

9 7.2

A desk with a top that folds down and drawers for papers

is similar but usually without built-in shelves above the writing surface

W

writing desk

vssecretaire

3 2.3

A desk with a flat surface and small drawers for writing by hand

is usually a fixed desk emphasizing a hinged surface and correspondence storage

E

escritoire

vssecretaire

• Archaic

1 9.9

A small writing desk with drawers for letters and papers

focuses more on use for letters and storing correspondence than internal layout

W

writing table

vssecretaire

1 3.3

A desk with a flat top used for writing and often with drawers

includes a hinged surface designed for writing and storing letters

How Complex

rolltop desk

1 4.7

secretaire

• UK

9.9

writing desk

3 2.3

lapboard

5.8

Surface Forms

Etymology