cover for
Idioms-
Also, cover up for . Conceal a wrongdoing or wrongdoer, as in Bill was supposed to be on duty but went to a ballgame and Alan agreed to cover for him or I covered up for my friend when her mother called to find out where she was . [1960s] Also see cover up , def. 2.
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Substitute for someone, act on someone's behalf, as in Mary was asked to cover for Joe while he was on jury duty . [c. 1970]
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cover for something . Provide protection against some hazard, as in This policy covers the house for fire but not for theft . This idiom employs the verb to cover in the sense of “protect” or “shield,” a usage dating from the 13th century.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The pensioner, from York, applied for a year's worth of cover for her Suzuki Splash car with Swinton Insurance, believing she was fully complying with the law.
From BBC • Apr. 20, 2026
The dispersion of the drones also complicates air cover for ground forces.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 7, 2026
“I had done the cover for George magazine,” Stern said on his eponymous SiriusXM radio show Monday.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 25, 2026
Many restaurants, after raising prices to cover for the past several years of supply shocks, are now trying to find ways to cut them after scaring customers away.
From MarketWatch • Feb. 26, 2026
But there are never any good nighttime landmarks or any kind of cover for a reception team.
From "Code Name Verity" by Elizabeth Wein
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
