Synonyms

conceal

American

[kuhn-seel] / kənˈsil /

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.

conceal British

/ kənˈsiːl /

verb

to keep from discovery; hide
to keep secret

"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

Synonym Usage

See hide ¹.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Inflected Forms

Participles

Conjugated Forms

Present

Past

Future

Etymology

Origin of conceal

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English conselen, concelen, from Anglo-French conceler from Latin concēlāre, from con- con- + cēlāre “to hide” ( see also hull ¹)

Explanation

When you conceal something, you are keeping it from being discovered: “To avoid another argument with his cousins, Jonathan worked hard to conceal his disappointment at the outcome of the race.” The verb conceal can be used to describe the hiding of feelings (as in “to conceal anger”) or facts (as in “to conceal identity”). Conceal also can be used to describe the act of hiding or covering an item to prevent discovery. If you eat the last piece of chocolate cake, for example, you may want to conceal the evidence by removing the icing-stained plate from your room.

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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:

conceal conceals concealed concealing

"The man subsequently deleted the image and the related application in an attempt to conceal his actions," the police statement said.

From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2026

Former lovers, they cannot conceal from themselves or each other the depth of their old attachment.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026

Ms. ffitch does not conceal her personal sympathies—it’s safe to assume she is not on the side of the white supremacists—but she isn’t preachy.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary said on Friday it would use new powers under the Crime and Policing Act to prevent people involved in protest activity from wearing face coverings that conceal their identity.

From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026

Was he pretending to be jealous to conceal the fact that he was?

From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan

The presidency is a skin suit that barely conceals this ambition.

From Salon ● Jun. 2, 2026

This feels like a benefit because it conceals from patients the true cost of their care, while its shortcomings relative to other countries are noticeable only to policy nerds.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 30, 2026

The production, directed by CTG’s artistic director, Snehal Desai, is drenched in glitz and glamour that conceals its darker themes — until it doesn’t.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 17, 2026

However, this apparent balance conceals strong regional differences.

From Science Daily ● Jan. 25, 2026

That jetty wall conceals the inner harbor, he realized, as the Merry Midwife was pulling down her sail.

From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin

Asymmetric's report found, however, that the agents opened private accounts on a website analytics service, which concealed their searches, and created temporary email inboxes, one of which was set to self-delete after 48 hours.

From Barron's ● Oct. 1, 2026

Kyaw, in a written response to questions, denied he concealed the contract.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026

However, a tribunal said on Thursday, external that the most serious instances of misconduct in the charity "were concealed" from Campbell by a fellow trustee.

From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026

Later observations from the UCR team have provided an unusually close look at the social behavior that may help substances move through these concealed colonies.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 19, 2026

I did nothing he taught me—I neither concealed myself nor blended in with others to avoid notice.

From "The Cruel Prince" by Holly Black

Hartnett plays the hapless man well but his naivety could be concealing something more sinister, as it did in the M. Night Shyamalan thriller “Trap.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026

In 1998, Max was sentenced to community service teaching art in Harlem and a $30,000 fine after prosecutors charged him with concealing $714,000 in income from art sales between 1988 and 1991.

From Barron's ● Sep. 17, 2026

Instead of exposed ice, they resemble sprawling fields of loose rock, while potentially concealing large quantities of ice below the surface.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 28, 2026

By concealing internal deliberation to enforce societal compliance, the state transformed biopolitical management into a performance of infallible authority.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026

I had tried concealing myself in the powder room, but it didn't work.

From "The Bell Jar" by Sylvia Plath

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023