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Synonyms

take cover

Idioms  

  1. Seek protection, find a hiding place, as in It started to pour so we took cover under the trees, or He wanted to avoid the reporters so we said he could take cover in our summer cottage. This term uses cover in the sense of “shelter” or “concealment,” a usage dating from the 1400s.

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.

Guests, including journalists, administration officials, and cabinet members, were instructed to take cover, with many ducking under tables as exits were secured.

From Salon • Apr. 25, 2026

An emergency alert broadcast in English warned people to take cover away from the windows.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 4, 2026

Other local residents scurried to take cover in basements.

From Barron's • Mar. 16, 2026

Broadcast-news anchors, in full glam, take cover under listing canopies, patiently awaiting their next hit.

From Slate • Feb. 23, 2026

The least little old biting shoat could make her take cover.

From "Old Yeller" by Fred Gipson

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.

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