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Sub Rosa and Secrecy
Sub rosa literally means "under the rose" in New Latin. Since ancient times, the rose has often been associated with secrecy. In ancient mythology, Cupid gave a rose to Harpocrates, the god of silence, to keep him from telling about the indiscretions of Venus. Ceilings of dining rooms have been decorated with carvings of roses, reportedly to remind guests that what was said at the table should be kept confidential. Roses have also been placed over confessionals as a symbol of the confidentiality of confession. Sub rosa entered the English language in the 17th century, and even before then, people were using the English version, "under the rose." Earlier still, unter der Rose was apparently used in Germany, where the phrase is thought to have originated.
Examples of sub-rosa in a Sentence
Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 7 Oct. 2021
Some of the most exciting scenes in Donner's book star Don Heath Jr., the tween son of an American embassy official and sub rosa intelligence officer.
—Jim Higgins, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 18 Aug. 2021
Even today psilocybin is popular in America, though its use, like the use of all psychedelics, is largely sub rosa.
—Rebecca Coffey, Forbes, 5 Apr. 2021
There is something about the way the world relates to women that is bound to breed darkness — even if that darkness is sub rosa, hidden under blond curls and pretty dresses.
—New York Times, 17 Dec. 2020
Everything was sub rosa — not just the historians' work, but even, when the essays began to be published in November 2013, the final product.
—The Salt Lake Tribune, 28 Oct. 2020
The chance surely won’t recur to take the measure—platinum-iridium grade or not—of an artist whose influence on our art and, sub rosa, our lives in common, remains beyond large, engulfing.
—Peter Schjeldahl, The New Yorker, 2 Mar. 2020
Cite this Entry
“Sub-rosa.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sub-rosa. Accessed 3 May. 2025.
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