shroud

American  

[shroud] / ʃraʊd /

noun

1. a cloth or sheet in which a corpse is wrapped for burial.

   Synonyms:

   winding sheet

2. something that covers or conceals like a garment.

   a shroud of rain.

3. Nautical. any of a number of taut ropes or wires converging from both sides on the head of a lower or upper mast of the outer end of a bowsprit to steady it against lateral sway: a part of the standing rigging.

4. Also called shroud line.  Aeronautics. any of a number of suspension cords of a parachute attaching the load to the canopy.

5. Also called shrouding.  Machinery.

   1. (on a nonmetallic gear) an extended metal rim enclosing the ends of the teeth on either side.

   2. (on a water wheel) one of two rings of boards or plates enclosing the buckets at their ends.

6. Rocketry. a cone-shaped shield that protects the payload of a launch vehicle.

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verb (used with object)

1. to wrap or clothe for burial; enshroud.

2. to cover; hide from view.

   Synonyms:

   screen, conceal

3. to veil, as in obscurity or mystery.

   They shrouded their past lives in an effort to forget.

4. to provide (a water wheel) with a shroud.

5. Obsolete. to shelter.

verb (used without object)

1. Archaic. to take shelter.

shroud British  

/ ʃraʊd /

noun

1. a garment or piece of cloth used to wrap a dead body

2. anything that envelops like a garment

   a shroud of mist

3. a protective covering for a piece of equipment

4. astronautics a streamlined protective covering used to protect the payload during a rocket-powered launch

5. nautical one of a pattern of ropes or cables used to stay a mast

6. any of a set of wire cables stretched between a smokestack or similar structure and the ground, to prevent side sway

7. Also called: shroud line.  any of a set of lines running from the canopy of a parachute to the harness

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verb

1. (tr) to wrap in a shroud

2. (tr) to cover, envelop, or hide

3. archaic to seek or give shelter

Other Word Forms

• shroudless adjective
• shroudlike adjective

Etymology

Origin of shroud

before 1000; (noun) Middle English; Old English scrūd; cognate with Old Norse skrūth; akin to shred; (v.) Middle English shrouden, derivative of the noun; replacing Middle English shriden, Old English scrȳdan, derivative of scrūd

Example Sentences

With a mass comparable to Jupiter, the planet is shrouded in dark soot-like clouds.

From Science Daily

Another man stands outside the nearby vegetable market holding a bird cage shrouded in a black veil.

From BBC

This is another project currently shrouded in secrecy.

From BBC

Titan -- shrouded by a hazy atmosphere -- stands out as the only place besides Earth where liquid is known to exist on the surface.

From Science Daily

The will is a public document, but the trust into which all Epstein’s assets will flow after his estate settles debts and legal claims remains shrouded in secrecy.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• cloak
• pall
• veil