hidden
Americanadjective
verb
verb
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of hidden
First recorded in 1540–50, for the adjective
Explanation
Hidden things can't be seen — they're concealed in some way. A hidden video camera inside a teddy bear might secretly be keeping an eye on a new babysitter. People with hidden feelings don't let their sadness, anger, and joy show; and hidden clues in a treasure hunt can't be easily found. Hidden things can be obscured deliberately (like hidden eggs at an Easter egg hunt), or simply out of view or undetected by you. Hidden is the past participle of hide, from the Old English hydan, which means "to hide or conceal," but also "to bury a corpse."
Vocabulary lists containing hidden
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.
She brings out her dog Titi, who was hidden on stage throughout the entire performance, and shares that UCB gave her a new outlook on life.
From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 3, 2026
And almost everyone in town has something he or she wants to keep hidden.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 2, 2026
They found different methods consistently revealed an extremely large number of cryptic species which underscored how much biodiversity remained hidden.
From BBC • Jun. 30, 2026
A long-running debate about a mysterious crater hidden beneath the North Sea has finally been settled.
From Science Daily • Jun. 30, 2026
It had been buried off to the side of the trail in the snow, buried neatly with the snow smoothed over the top so that it was completely hidden.
From "Woodsong" by Gary Paulsen
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.
