cloak
Americannoun
-
cloaks
plural
verb (used with object)
-
cloaks,
present (3rd person singular)
-
cloaked,
past participle, past
-
cloaking
present participle
-
to cover with or as if with a cloak.
She arrived at the opera cloaked in green velvet.
-
to hide; conceal.
The mission was cloaked in mystery.
noun
-
a wraplike outer garment fastened at the throat and falling straight from the shoulders
-
something that covers or conceals
verb
-
to cover with or as if with a cloak
-
to hide or disguise
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
cloaksimple
-
cloakssimple
-
have cloakedperfect
-
has cloakedperfect
-
am cloakingprogressive
-
are cloakingprogressive
-
is cloakingprogressive
-
have been cloakingperfect progressive
-
has been cloakingperfect progressive
Past
-
cloakedsimple
-
had cloakedperfect
-
was cloakingprogressive
-
were cloakingprogressive
-
had been cloakingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of cloak
1175–1225; Middle English cloke (< Old French ) < Medieval Latin cloca, variant of clocca bell-shaped cape, bell; see clock 1
Explanation
A cloak is anything that conceals or hides something, like an over-sized, dark raincoat you wear when you don't want your friends to see you're going to the movies without them. As a noun, a cloak is usually a loose piece of clothing that you wear over your other clothes, like a cape or a gown. It especially refers to an outer garment that you might wear while traveling in order to protect your outfit or to conceal your identity. As a verb, to cloak is to conceal or hide something. If you were a famous person who wanted to go out alone, you might cloak your identity with a cloak.
Vocabulary lists containing cloak
The Balcony Scene from "Romeo and Juliet"
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"Encounter"
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Unit 2: Pivotal Words and Phrases
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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:
That creates a cloak of consistency, because people expect interventions, but it does not necessarily mean VAR is being used as originally intended, for the real howlers.
From BBC ● Jun. 26, 2026
For three glorious seasons between 1983 and 1985, ‘80s kids also had the “Dungeons & Dragons” animated series with its two girl heroes: an acrobat and a thief with an invisibility cloak.
From Salon ● Jun. 24, 2026
Although relatively complex, and therefore more expensive than the matchlock, smaller wheellocks—the first pistols—could be used with one hand and concealed under a cloak or other garment.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 19, 2026
They wanted to be able to cloak this in the air of legitimacy, when it has nothing to do with what a real lawsuit would look like.
From Slate ● Jun. 9, 2026
The cloak, of course, had been Clare’s, and it provided Gingersnipes with a comfort that went much deeper than fur and flesh.
From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman
Throughout the holy city, Iranian flags can be seen printed on white pilgrims' garments, cloaks, bags and buses.
From Barron's ● May 25, 2026
Michael Jackson’s celebrity is so blinding, his music so compelling, that it cloaks him with an almost impenetrable shield from the truth: He was a stone cold pedophile.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 2, 2026
These thick cloaks of dust might dim the stars' light to the point of utter undetectability.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 9, 2025
So Yonga and Kapwepwe went to find out more from the community in the Bengweulu region in north-east of the country where the cloaks came from.
From BBC ● Jun. 7, 2025
These they lashed together with bowstrings, and spread their cloaks upon the frame.
From "The Two Towers" by J. R. R. Tolkien
If predecessor Gareth Southgate was criticised for being cloaked in conservatism and playing it safe, Tuchel's iron will in following his instincts has now effectively positioned himself as the anti-Southgate.
From BBC ● May 22, 2026
The king has moved swiftly to protect it, displaying what James Knox, who has worked closely with Charles, once described to me as “steely determination cloaked in marvelous manners.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 5, 2026
"We shouldn't just think dinosaurs are mammals cloaked in scales and feathers," Holtz said.
From Science Daily ● Feb. 27, 2026
Sand and dust storms -- driven by severe drought, rising temperatures and deforestation -- have cloaked cities and villages in an endless ochre haze, grounded flights and filled hospitals with patients suffering from breathing difficulties.
From Barron's ● Dec. 28, 2025
At the same time, she looks like an in-your-face ghost or someone cloaked in a very obvious invisibility cloak.
From "Saints and Misfits" by S.K. Ali
"This ability finds applications ranging from signal processing to invisible cloaking."
From Science Daily ● Jun. 12, 2026
Stirred into the steaming ditalini, the yolk turned silken and rich, cloaking the broth in the sort of luxurious texture that makes you briefly forget modern life altogether.
From Salon ● May 12, 2026
I’m including the comments in full because of how out of character they were for a Fed chair best known for cloaking his future decisions:
From Barron's ● Mar. 18, 2026
And don’t be surprised if that picture is cloaking something behind its frame.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2024
Its cloaking device was still engaged and its shields were up.
From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline
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.
