disguise
Americanverb (used with object)
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disguises,
present (3rd person singular)
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disguised,
past participle, past
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disguising
present participle
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to change the appearance or guise of so as to conceal identity or mislead, as by means of deceptive garb.
The king was disguised as a peasant.
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to conceal or cover up the truth or actual character of by a counterfeit form or appearance; misrepresent.
to disguise one's intentions.
noun
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disguises
plural
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that which disguises; something that serves or is intended for concealment of identity, character, or quality; a deceptive covering, condition, manner, etc..
Noble words can be the disguise of base intentions.
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the makeup, mask, costume, or overall changed appearance of an entertainer.
a clown's disguise.
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the act of disguising.
to speak without disguise.
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the state of being disguised; masquerade.
The gods appeared in disguise.
verb
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to modify the appearance or manner in order to conceal the identity of (oneself, someone, or something)
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(tr) to misrepresent in order to obscure the actual nature or meaning
to disguise the facts
noun
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a mask, costume, or manner that disguises
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the act of disguising or the state of being disguised
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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disguisednessnoun
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disguisementnoun
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disguisernoun
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predisguisenoun
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disguisableadjective
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disguisedadjective
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nondisguisedadjective
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undisguisableadjective
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undisguisedadjective
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well-disguisedadjective
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disguisedlyadverb
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undisguisedlyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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disguisesimple
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disguisessimple
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have disguisedperfect
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has disguisedperfect
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am disguisingprogressive
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are disguisingprogressive
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is disguisingprogressive
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have been disguisingperfect progressive
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has been disguisingperfect progressive
Past
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disguisedsimple
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had disguisedperfect
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was disguisingprogressive
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were disguisingprogressive
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had been disguisingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of disguise
1275–1325; Middle English disg ( u ) isen < Anglo-French, Old French de ( s ) guiser, equivalent to des- dis- 1 + -guiser, derivative of guise guise
Explanation
A disguise is something you put on so no one recognizes you. It also can be used as a verb. You can disguise yourself with a wig and mustache; that's a great disguise. Disguise can be used anytime you're talking about concealing or hiding something. Most of the time we think of a disguise as something you wear, but you can also disguise your feelings. Criminals might disguise their intentions. You can also use the word to describe something that seems to be one thing, but turns out to be another. You missed the plane, but then the plane crashed. That's a blessing in disguise.
Vocabulary lists containing disguise
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas
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Legend
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creation myths
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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.
See Examples For:
What makes this episode unusually clarifying is that nobody on the winning side seems to feel much need to disguise the motive.
From Slate ● Aug. 14, 2026
I hadn’t learned yet that I was a Type A person masquerading as Type B. The disguise began to fray almost immediately.
From Salon ● Aug. 4, 2026
Furthermore, they have to account for the possibility that the person may be trying to disguise their natural writing voice.
From BBC ● Aug. 2, 2026
“Partly it’s because a humble person may be a god in disguise, but it also allows society to function. People need to travel, to trade, and everyone is at the mercy of strangers.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 7, 2026
“One could hardly fashion a disguise for a scullery maid or a stowaway out of these elegant fabrics. But for my purposes, they ought to do quite well.”
From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood
She disguises herself with a mask and a L.A.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2026
Researchers have identified a remarkable new spider species in Ecuador's Amazon rainforest that disguises itself as a parasitic fungus.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 17, 2026
Feeling angrily outcast from her community, Mary tried to rise from her station by assuming a variety of disguises.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 11, 2026
They’ve also added NordWhisper, a stealth protocol launched in early 2025 that disguises VPN traffic as regular web browsing.
From Salon ● Jun. 2, 2026
Is there no end to his disguises, of benevolence?
From "The Handmaid's Tale" by Margaret Atwood
Now, at CBS News, her editorial interference has been disguised as routine management.
From Salon ● Aug. 8, 2026
Colson Whitehead’s latest foray into the bent world of “reluctant fence” Ray Carney — “Cool Machine,” the third and final installment of his Harlem Trilogy — is an American epic disguised as a heist novel.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 20, 2026
In order to learn, Sullivan, played by Joel McCrea, embarks on a road trip disguised as a tramp and all kinds of terrible things happen to him that happen to people without resources.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 16, 2026
"We've had to wrestle with so many things and try to understand so many things, like how could something like this even happen? Let alone disguised as a fight for women."
From BBC ● Jul. 9, 2026
“Earliest we know, we sprung from my grandfather, Augustus,” Miss Trotter began, but not without a few words of spite disguised as pity about Ma Charles.
From "Gone Crazy in Alabama" by Rita Williams-Garcia
Anthropic found that the model engaged in a behavior called “alignment faking” — deliberately disguising its true reasoning and dangerous capabilities to avoid being restricted by people.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 18, 2026
"But disguising palm oil as waste products like POME... has been far too easy for suppliers and traders. Verification and certification of these imports is clearly failing," Delaney said.
From Barron's ● Mar. 16, 2026
Through this journey of self-exploration I have come to realize how coercive gender-identity ideology was for me, disguising harm as compassion.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 11, 2026
“And for well-funded organizations to contribute to that by disguising what they’re doing online just helps exacerbate that problem of people not trusting what they come across.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 11, 2026
We had to keep her out of sight, though, so Horace went back into the disguising room and fetched a denim sack.
From "Hollow City" by Ransom Riggs
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.
