conceal

[kuh n-seel]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR conceal ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object)

to hide; withdraw or remove from observation; cover or keep from sight: He concealed the gun under his coat.

to keep secret; to prevent or avoid disclosing or divulging: to conceal one's identity by using a false name.

Origin of conceal

1275–1325; Middle English conselen, concelen < Anglo-French conceler < Latin concēlāre, equivalent to con- con- + cēlāre to hide (akin to hull¹, Greek koleón scabbard (see Coleoptera); cf. occult)

Related formscon·ceal·a·ble, adjectivecon·ceal·a·bil·i·ty, nouncon·ceal·ed·ly, adverbcon·ceal·ed·ness, nouncon·ceal·er, nounhalf-con·cealed, adjectivehalf-con·ceal·ing, adjectivepre·con·ceal, verb (used with object)re·con·ceal, verb (used with object)sem·i·con·cealed, adjectivesub·con·cealed, adjectiveun·con·cealed, adjectiveun·con·ceal·ing, adjectiveun·con·ceal·ing·ly, adverbwell-con·cealed, adjective

Synonyms for conceal

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR conceal ON THESAURUS.COM

1. See hide¹.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for conceal

harbor, cover, stow, mask, cloak, stash, lurk, camouflage, wrap, obscure, bury, skulk, plant, masquerade, screen, cache, sneak, enshroud, couch, shelter

Examples from the Web for conceal

Contemporary Examples of conceal

As great as this feat was, an equally demanding test followed: to conceal from the Nazis that Enigma had been beaten.
The Castration of Alan Turing, Britain’s Code-Breaking WWII Hero
Clive Irving
November 29, 2014
Many of those gathering in the run-up to the grand jury decision wore hockey and tear gas masks to conceal their identity.
Justice Was Served in Ferguson—This Isn’t Jim Crow America
Ron Christie
November 25, 2014
I maintain that our mistake was in overthinking our criminal's desire to conceal the body.
Knowing Where the Bodies Are Buried: An Excerpt From 'Lives in Ruins'
Marilyn Johnson
November 14, 2014
Call them Trojan horse foods: nutritiously pleasing ingredients (oats, yogurts) that conceal a whole host of junk.
Your Health Food’s Hidden Sugar Bomb
Michael Schulson
July 8, 2014
Businessmen and churchgoers find it difficult to conceal while wearing a shirt and tie.
A Gun Owner Speaks: My Case for Open Carry
CJ Grisham
June 12, 2014

Historical Examples of conceal

This is too well-known a truth for me to endeavor to conceal it, especially from you.
Clarissa, Volume 1 (of 9)
Samuel Richardson
About daylight I reached a forest in which I could conceal myself during the day.
Biography of a Slave
Charles Thompson
He dashed the glass from him, and burst into tears which he did not even try to conceal.
Weighed and Wanting
George MacDonald
Burke winced, but he made shift to conceal his realization of the truth she had stated to him.
Within the Law
Marvin Dana
She made no attempt to conceal them; rather, she pointed to them with pride.
K
Mary Roberts Rinehart

British Dictionary definitions for conceal

conceal

verb (tr)

to keep from discovery; hide

to keep secret

Derived Formsconcealable, adjectiveconcealer, nounconcealment, noun

Word Origin for conceal

C14: from Old French conceler, from Latin concēlāre, from com- (intensive) + cēlāre to hide

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

Word Origin and History for conceal

early 14c., concelen, from Old French conceler "to hide, conceal, dissimulate," from Latin concelare "to hide," from com-, intensive prefix (see com-), + celare "to hide," from PIE root *kel- "to hide" (see cell). Replaced Old English deagan. Related: Concealed; concealing.