secret sauce
noun
1
: a sauce that adds an important element to a dish and that has ingredients which are typically kept secret
A frank of beef, pork, and veal … is split lengthwise, coated with secret sauce, and cooked on a grill.—
Jane and Michael Stern
Jane and Michael Sterncalled also special sauce
2
: an element, quality, ability, or practice that makes something or someone successful or distinctive
If leadership has a secret sauce, it may well be humility. A humble boss understands that there are things he doesn't know.—The Economist
The Economistcalled also special sauce
Examples of secret sauce in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
And those aren’t even Scheffler’s true statistical secret sauce here: Since 2022, he’s picked up more than 15 strokes on the field on shots around the green, about five more than any other player in that span.
—Justin Ray, New York Times, 9 Apr. 2025
Navigating a new caddie will be difficult to do on a difficult course, but maybe Greiner is the secret sauce that Thomas needs to get back in the winner's circle.
—Raja Krishnamoorthi, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 Apr. 2025
All-audience appeal Is Jack Black the secret sauce for game-to-screen adaptations?
—Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 7 Apr. 2025
Leaders who show genuine empathy build trust, and trust is the secret sauce of any successful digital transformation.
—Nono Bokete, Forbes.com, 27 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for secret sauce
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Justin Ray, New York Times, 9 Apr. 2025
Navigating a new caddie will be difficult to do on a difficult course, but maybe Greiner is the secret sauce that Thomas needs to get back in the winner's circle.
—Raja Krishnamoorthi, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 Apr. 2025
All-audience appeal Is Jack Black the secret sauce for game-to-screen adaptations?
—Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 7 Apr. 2025
Leaders who show genuine empathy build trust, and trust is the secret sauce of any successful digital transformation.
—Nono Bokete, Forbes.com, 27 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for secret sauce
Cite this Entry
“Secret sauce.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/secret%20sauce. Accessed 22 Apr. 2025.
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