hide

1 of 5

verb (1)

hid ˈhid How to pronounce hide (audio) ; hidden ˈhi-dᵊn How to pronounce hide (audio) or hid; hiding ˈhī-diŋ How to pronounce hide (audio)

transitive verb

1
a
: to put out of sight : secrete
hide a key under the doormat
b
: to conceal for shelter or protection : shield
They hid him from the police.
2
: to keep secret
hide the truth
3
: to screen from or as if from view : obscure
clouds hid the sun
4
: to turn (the eyes or face) away in shame or anger

intransitive verb

1
: to remain out of sight
she hid under the bed
often used with out
hiding out from the cops
2
: to seek protection or evade responsibility
hides behind his dark glasses, hoping to avoid being recognized
hider noun

hide

2 of 5

noun (1)

1
: the skin of an animal whether raw or prepared for use
used especially of large heavy skins
buffalo killed for their hides
boots made of cow hide
2
: the life or physical well-being of a person
betrayed his friend to save his own hide

hide

3 of 5

verb (2)

hided; hiding

transitive verb

: to give a beating to : flog

hide

4 of 5

noun (2)

chiefly British
: blind sense 2
hunting ducks from a hide

hide

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noun (3)

: any of various old English units of land area
especially : a unit of 120 acres
Phrases
hide or hair or hide nor hair
: a trace or visible sign of someone or something
a wife he hadn't seen hide or hair of in over 20 yearsH. L. Davis
Choose the Right Synonym for hide

hide, conceal, screen, secrete, bury mean to withhold or withdraw from sight.

hide may or may not suggest intent.

hide in the closet
a house hidden in the woods

conceal usually does imply intent and often specifically implies a refusal to divulge.

concealed the weapon

screen implies an interposing of something that prevents discovery.

a house screened by trees

secrete suggests a depositing in a place unknown to others.

secreted the amulet inside his shirt

bury implies covering up so as to hide completely.

buried the treasure

Examples of hide in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
Using a nearly monochromatic mix of black ink and photographic stills, Kantor imagines the moment when Haim escaped a group of Nazis by hiding in a pigsty. Peter Debruge, Variety, 4 Mar. 2024 More maximalist patterns makes stains less noticeable, while dark colors hide stains that inevitably accumulate over time. Sophia Beams, Better Homes & Gardens, 4 Mar. 2024 There’s wireless phone charging as standard in UK models, although the pad for this is somewhat hidden in front under the dashboard. James Morris, Forbes, 2 Mar. 2024 The Israel Defense Forces are poised to attack the southern Gazan city of Rafah, where Israel believes that four of Hamas’s last six battalions are hiding in tunnels and holding what is estimated to be around a hundred still surviving hostages. Bernard Avishai, The New Yorker, 2 Mar. 2024 He was found hiding in the bushes near an apartment complex with a hunting knife and a .32-caliber pistol. Charles Rabin, Miami Herald, 1 Mar. 2024 This whiskey is a strong 63 percent ABV, but that doesn’t hide notes of citrus, honey, spice, and butterscotch on the palate. Jonah Flicker, Robb Report, 1 Mar. 2024 Yet it could be argued that with security underwritten by the US and Europe, given a chance, neighbouring countries might allow a kind of neutral Swiss vibe to flourish where their silent money can go to hide and multiply. Melik Kaylan, Forbes, 21 Feb. 2024 Although the identities of all the men are hidden, at least part of the reason for publishing the videos appears to be to heap shame on those looking to flee. CNN, 21 Feb. 2024
Noun
That overabundance of bacteria wreaks havoc on the host deer’s hide. Katie Hill, Outdoor Life, 29 Feb. 2024 Gerstein painted the base of Lively's nails in the shade and then transitioned to the giraffe print French manicure, dotting the tips of Lively's nails with those instantly recognizable blobs of color like a giraffe's hide. Kara Nesvig, Allure, 14 Feb. 2024 It was mostly comprised of legs — many of them tagged with what appeared to be hunting license and confirmation numbers — as well as stomachs, livers, hides, tails, and pieces of garbage. Katie Hill, Outdoor Life, 21 Dec. 2023 The hunters gave the bear’s hide and skull to Fish and Game, apparently a young healthy male weighing between 200 and 275 pounds. Idaho Statesman, 31 Jan. 2024 Look for other signature elements like snakes, hides, cacti or vintage cowboy art. Kristina McGuirk, Better Homes & Gardens, 25 Jan. 2024 Keep in Mind Expect subtle shade differences in the leather if purchasing multiple stools as no two pieces can be produced from a single hide. Addie Morton, Better Homes & Gardens, 17 Jan. 2024 This process— still used by specialized tanners today — involves extracting tannin from the bark of oak trees, which is then infused into hides during an extended soaking process in vats at a tannery. Samuel M. Riley, Baltimore Sun, 13 Jan. 2024 The hides and sinews and plant fibers worn by our ancestors all rotted away, leaving little physical trace in the archaeological record. Sarah Zhang, The Atlantic, 2 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'hide.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Verb (1)

Middle English hiden, from Old English hȳdan; akin to Greek keuthein to conceal

Noun (1) and Verb (2)

Middle English, from Old English hȳd; akin to Old High German hūt hide, Latin cutis skin, Greek kytos hollow vessel

Noun (3)

Middle English, from Old English hīgid, hīd

First Known Use

Verb (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Noun (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb (2)

circa 1825, in the meaning defined above

Noun (2)

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun (3)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of hide was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near hide

Cite this Entry

“Hide.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hide. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

hide

1 of 3 verb
hid
ˈhid
; hidden
ˈhid-ᵊn
or hid; hiding
ˈhīd-iŋ
1
: to put or get out of sight : conceal
hide a treasure
hid in a closet
2
: to keep secret
hide one's grief
3
: to screen from view
a house hidden by trees
clouds hid the sun
4
: to seek protection or avoid responsibility
hider
ˈhīd-ər
noun

hide

2 of 3 noun
: the skin of an animal whether raw or dressed

hide

3 of 3 verb
hided; hiding
: to give a beating to
Etymology

Verb

Old English hȳdan "to get out of sight"

Noun

Old English hȳd "skin of an animal"

More from Merriam-Webster on hide

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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