shroud

[shroud]

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.

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

/ 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

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of shroud¹

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of shroud¹

Old English scrūd garment; related to Old Norse skrūth gear

Example Sentences

The clouds look sinister in the darkness and shroud any stars that may have been visible.

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One body is later seen wrapped in a white shroud.

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The attacks are usually isolated and often shrouded in silence.

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Dozens of protesters rallied in New Delhi on Sunday to demand government action on toxic air, as a thick haze containing dangerous microparticles shrouded the Indian capital.

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This is similar to the height of an adult human and consistent with a body in a burial shroud commonly seen in Sudan.

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Related Words

• cloak 
• pall 
• veil