conceal

verb

con·ceal | \ kən-ˈsēl

concealed; concealing; conceals

Definition of conceal

1 : to prevent disclosure or recognition of conceal the truth She could barely conceal her anger.

2 : to place out of sight concealed himself behind the door The defendant is accused of attempting to conceal evidence.

Other Words from conceal Synonyms & Antonyms Choose the Right Synonym More Example Sentences Learn More about conceal

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Other Words from conceal

concealable \ kən-ˈsē-lə-bəl

\ adjective

concealingly \ kən-ˈsē-liŋ-lē

\ adverb

concealment \ kən-ˈsēl-mənt

\ noun

Synonyms & Antonyms for conceal

Synonyms

bury, cache, ensconce, hide, secrete

Antonyms

display, exhibit

Choose the Right Synonym for conceal

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 conceal in a Sentence

The sunglasses conceal her eyes. The controls are concealed behind a panel. The defendant is accused of attempting to conceal evidence. The editorial accused the government of concealing the truth. She could barely conceal her anger.

Recent Examples on the Web

To conceal their crime, the sisters must go deeper into Easter Cove's underbelly and uncover the town matriarchs' darkest secrets. — Mia Galuppo, The Hollywood Reporter, "Amazon Nabs Rights to Noir 'Blow the Man Down' (Exclusive)," 15 Aug. 2019 Run time spent on unseen footage of Antonio Brown talking about his shredded feet and cryogenic chamber accident that seemed to be concealed from the opener: 2 minutes and 37 seconds. — Conor Orr, SI.com, "Hard Knocks Recap: What We Learned About Jon Gruden and Antonio Brown's Feet," 14 Aug. 2019 Even when tear gas is not employed, many protesters wear masks and balaclavas to conceal their identities. — Yanan Wang, The Christian Science Monitor, "Why Hong Kong protests ebb and flow, like water," 5 Aug. 2019 Alberto Iran Corbo Martinez, a defendant in one case, tried to conceal songbirds in hair curlers taped to his legs beneath baggy pants. — Karine Aigner, National Geographic, "Songbirds are being snatched from Miami’s forests," 25 July 2019 The couple alleges CHA Fertility Clinic knew about the embryo mix-up and tried to conceal it. — CBS News, "Couple says wrong embryos implanted by IVF clinic in "unimaginable mishap"," 8 July 2019 One explanation is that Colangelo is unhinged enough to think this way, yet clever and collected enough to conceal it for two years. — David Murphy, Philly.com, "The big problem for Sixers and Bryan Colangelo: Perception matters | David Murphy," 30 May 2018 During the investigation agents found evidence Alcharihi had illegally imported the mosaic using fraudulent documents and knowingly concealed it in his home. — Dakin Andone, CNN, "California man accused of smuggling Byzantine-era mosaic out of Syria," 27 May 2018 In its executive summary for Operation Spa, state law enforcement officials said using limited liability companies disguised the nature of the business and concealed its proceeds. — USA Today, "Sex trafficking is behind the lucrative illicit massage business. Why police can't stop it.," 30 July 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'conceal.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

History and Etymology for conceal

Middle English concelen, borrowed from Anglo-French conceler, borrowed from Latin concēlāre, from con- con- + cēlāre "to hide, keep secret," probably derivative of an unattested lengthened-grade noun formed from the Indo-European verb base *ḱel- "cover, conceal," whence Latin occulere "to hide from view, keep secret" (from *ob-cel-), Old Irish ceilid "(s/he) hides," Welsh celaf "(I) hide," Germanic *hel-a- "hide" (whence Old English, Old Saxon & Old High German helan "to hide, keep secret")