unveil
Americanverb (used with object)
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unveils,
present (3rd person singular)
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unveiled,
past participle, past
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unveiling
present participle
verb (used without object)
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unveils,
present (3rd person singular)
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unveiled,
past participle, past
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unveiling
present participle
verb
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(tr) to remove the cover or shroud from, esp in the ceremonial unveiling of a monument, etc
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to remove the veil from (one's own or another person's face)
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(tr) to make (something secret or concealed) known or public; divulge; reveal
Usage
What does unveil mean? Unveil means to reveal or uncover something. This can be literal, such as by taking a veil or other physical covering off of something, as in The sculptor tugged the sheet away to unveil her masterpiece. It can also be used figuratively—often in a way that likens the action to physically uncovering something. In this sense, it can mean to present something publicly for the first time, as in They plan to unveil the new model at the convention next month. Or it can mean to uncover something that has been kept secret or hidden, as in Her investigative reporting unveiled a conspiracy. Things that have been revealed can be described with the adjective unveiled, as in Here are the first photos of the newly unveiled design concept. The noun unveiling can refer to an event where this happens, or the act of doing it, as in The plans will be revealed at the big unveiling next week. Example: The company unveiled its new phone design last week after months of speculation.
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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unveilsimple
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unveilssimple
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have unveiledperfect
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has unveiledperfect
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am unveilingprogressive
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are unveilingprogressive
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is unveilingprogressive
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have been unveilingperfect progressive
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has been unveilingperfect progressive
Past
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unveiledsimple
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had unveiledperfect
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was unveilingprogressive
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were unveilingprogressive
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had been unveilingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of unveil
Explanation
Unveil is a dramatic verb we use when we uncover or reveal something for the first time, often in front of a large gathering or as part of a publicity campaign. A city's mayor might unveil a new monument by removing an actual veil (cloth covering) from it. This is often done with great flourish and accompanied by a drum roll. In a more metaphorical sense, a software company might unveil — that is, publicly announce — a new video game or business application.
Vocabulary lists containing unveil
The Watsons Go to Birmingham
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "U"
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This Week In Words: Current Events Vocab for September 19–25, 2020
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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.
See Examples For:
Introducing a finder tag, an upgraded watch that checks for respiratory problems and the latest artificial intelligence superpowers in smartphones, Google on Wednesday will unveil its newest Pixel offerings.
From Barron's ● Aug. 12, 2026
Ferguson in May reported first-quarter sales of $7.5 billion, and analysts polled by FactSet expect the distributor to unveil sales of $8.7 billion when it reports second-quarter results next month.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 31, 2026
Big banks kicked off earnings season last week, and now the main event for many investors begins: Two of the Magnificent Seven, Alphabet and Tesla, unveil quarterly results this afternoon.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
Two of California’s boldest aerospace innovators joined forces to unveil an autonomous attack aircraft Monday.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
They’d read it right away, the senator said, and set up a public hearing of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee—a dramatic setting in which to unveil the Pentagon Papers to the American people.
From "Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War" by Steve Sheinkin
Mount Vernon’s newly renovated Education Center unveils an illuminating exhibition on the nation’s first leader.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026
Waymo unveils the Ojai, its new self-driving taxi that has more leg room and is better equipped for snowy roads.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 15, 2026
Nvidia’s stock climbs after the chip maker unveils RTX Spark, described as the most efficient PC chip ever built.
From Barron's ● Jun. 1, 2026
“Trump unveils 11 potential Supreme Court nominees,” Politico, May 18, 2016.
From Slate ● May 13, 2026
Dr. Bigelow unveils his plaster life mask of Phineas.
From "Phineas Gage" by John Fleischman
The company unveiled details about Pixar’s “Coco 2” and “Incredibles 3,” both of which got huge applause from the audience, as well as a live-action “Lilo & Stitch 2.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2026
The proposed regulations unveiled this week “really clarifies a lot of what employers were waiting for,” said Dorian Smith, leader of Mercer’s law and policy practice.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026
The company unveiled the service, called Truth API, in mid-July and said it would deliver posts from Trump and other high-profile accounts in milliseconds.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
Earlier this month, he and other Cracker Barrel executives attended the company’s annual off-site conference in Orlando, Fla., where last year the new logo was unveiled.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
Yet the palaces unveiled in the Rookery were so immense, so detailed, that their construction was likely to consume nearly all the remaining time, leaving little for him.
From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
The unveiling of the Luce was seen as one of the biggest launches of a new car in recent years.
From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026
—Asian equity markets were mixed as investors weighed signs of cooling U.S. inflation against President Trump’s unveiling of new tariffs on imports of drones and their components.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
When AFP visited for the unveiling, riding in the vehicle was a smooth experience on the flat concrete roads of the test centre at Barneveld, central Netherlands.
From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026
Late last night, the park indefinitely delayed its public unveiling, with a spokesperson citing additional fine-tuning that surfaced during its final days of testing.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026
Beto and Cari chose Thursday, pie day, for the unveiling.
From "Out of Darkness" by Ashley Hope Pérez
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.
