closet

[ kloz-it ]

/ ˈklɒz ɪt /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR closet ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a small room, enclosed recess, or cabinet for storing clothing, food, utensils, etc.

a small private room, especially one used for prayer, meditation, etc.

a state or condition of secrecy or carefully guarded privacy: Some conservatives remain in the closet except on election day. Gay liberation has encouraged many gay people to come out of the closet.

water closet.

adjective

private; secluded.

suited for use or enjoyment in privacy: closet reflections; closet prayer.

engaged in private study or speculation; speculative; unpractical: a closet thinker with no practical experience.

being or functioning as such in private; secret: a closet anarchist.

verb (used with object)

to shut up in a private room for a conference, interview, etc. (usually used in the passive voice): The secretary of state was closeted with the senator for three hours in a tense session.

Words nearby closet

closedown, closefisted, closemouthed, closeout, closer, closet, closet drama, closet queen, closeted, closetful, closeup

Origin of closet

1300–50; Middle English < Anglo-French, Middle French, equivalent to clos close (noun) + -et -et

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Examples from the Web for closet

One night in 2004, my college boyfriend called me from inside a closet in a north Toronto housing project.
Bobby Shmurda and Rap’s Ultimate Hoop Dream|Rawiya Kameir|December 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But once Kanye came along, Kim had to literally clean out her closet.
Kanye West and Kim Kardashian’s Balmain Campaign: High Fashion Meets Low Culture|Amy Zimmerman|December 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
When I was in the closet in my twenties, I considered suicide almost every day.
Do LGBTs Owe Christians an Olive Branch? Try The Other Way Around|Jay Michaelson|December 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It should be possible to make an interesting film in a closet with the door shut.
Alfred Hitchcock’s Fade to Black: The Great Director’s Final Days|David Freeman|December 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Hanley was forced to come out of the closet and resign all at once.
Headmasters Behaving Badly|Emily Shire|November 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He and Gipsy are this moment devouring my lady's marmalade in the closet.
The Beaux-Stratagem|George Farquhar
She went into her bedroom, and divesting herself of her apron hung it in the closet.
Murder in Any Degree|Owen Johnson
The closet was filled with women's clothing of all kinds, and styles.
The Eyes Have It|Gordon Randall Garrett
There was a closet between the two rooms: Wood bored a hole in the panel, and peeped through.
Catherine: A Story|William Makepeace Thackeray
On the side of the pantry opposite this closet are two cup-boards, with doors and shelves above and below.
Convenient Houses|Louis Henry Gibson

British Dictionary definitions for closet

closet

/ (ˈklɒzɪt) /

noun

a small cupboard or recess

a small private room

short for water closet

(modifier) private or secret

(modifier) suited or appropriate for use in privatecloset meditations

(modifier) US and Canadian based on or devoted to theory; speculativea closet strategist

verb -ets, -eting or -eted

(tr) to shut up or confine in a small private room, esp for conference or meditation

Word Origin for closet

C14: from Old French, from clos enclosure; see close 1

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Idioms and Phrases with closet

closet

see come out of the closet; skeleton in the closet.

closet

noun

adjective

verb (used with object)

Words related to closet

Words nearby closet

Origin of closet

Examples from the Web for closet

British Dictionary definitions for closet

noun

verb -ets, -eting or -eted

Word Origin for closet

Idioms and Phrases with closet