cover for
Idioms-
Also, cover up for . Conceal a wrongdoing or wrongdoer, as in Bill was supposed to be on duty but went to a ballgame and Alan agreed to cover for him or I covered up for my friend when her mother called to find out where she was . [1960s] Also see cover up , def. 2.
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Substitute for someone, act on someone's behalf, as in Mary was asked to cover for Joe while he was on jury duty . [c. 1970]
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cover for something . Provide protection against some hazard, as in This policy covers the house for fire but not for theft . This idiom employs the verb to cover in the sense of “protect” or “shield,” a usage dating from the 13th century.
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.
At times, Root struggled to contain his frustration, most visibly when Jacks was caught at cover for 30 with just 37 runs to get, but crucially remained unfazed with the bat.
From BBC ● Jul. 16, 2026
Now she is on a higher income she is happy to cover for the others sometimes.
From BBC ● Jun. 11, 2026
Underlying all that is the fragile ego of a state whose outward brassiness is often a cover for an inferiority complex stoked by its glittering neighbor.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 17, 2026
That gives Warsh some cover for arguing the picture is more complicated than the overall numbers suggest.
From Barron's ● May 14, 2026
When Abel ordered him to open a photography shop in New Jersey as cover for planned operations, he never got around to it.
From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin
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.
