conceal

verb

con·​ceal kən-ˈsēl 

concealed; concealing; conceals

transitive verb

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.

concealable

kən-ˈsē-lə-bəl 

adjective

concealingly

kən-ˈsē-liŋ-lē 

adverb

concealment

kən-ˈsēl-mənt 

noun

Synonyms

• bury
• cache
• ensconce
• hide
• secrete

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

Piotr Bobak, the elder Figueroa's boyfriend at the time of the killing, concealed the murder, police said. —USA TODAY, 17 Apr. 2024

Investigators believed the woman’s remains had been concealed on purpose and likely had been in the gully for 12 to 15 months before she was found. —Amy McDaniel, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 17 Apr. 2024

Jessica Lynn, 39, was charged with two felonies — concealing evidence and filing a false report — as well as one misdemeanor count of petty theft not exceeding $950, the district attorney’s office said in a news release Wednesday. —Keri Blakinger, Los Angeles Times, 17 Apr. 2024

The first provision of the law prohibits altering, destroying, mutilating or concealing a document. —Melissa Quinn, CBS News, 16 Apr. 2024

Prosecutors argue that his payment to Ms. Daniels was part of a pattern: Mr. Trump, faced with a swirl of damaging stories during the 2016 campaign, concealed them to influence the election. —Kate Christobek, New York Times, 15 Apr. 2024

Evan Turner, who worked at TikTok as a senior data scientist from April to September in 2022, said TikTok concealed the involvement of its Chinese owner during his employment. —Alexandra Sternlicht, Fortune, 15 Apr. 2024

Trump has pleaded not guilty to a 34-count indictment charging him with falsifying business records to conceal information from voters. —Peter Charalambous, ABC News, 15 Apr. 2024

She is charged with concealing a corpse, hindering prosecution and tampering with evidence, and was also being held without bail. —Dennis Romero, NBC News, 14 Apr. 2024

Word History

Etymology

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")

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

conceal

verb

con·​ceal kən-ˈsē(ə)l 

1

: to keep secret

conceal a fact

2

: to hide from sight

carry a concealed weapon

concealable

-ˈsē-lə-bəl 

adjective

concealer noun

Legal Definition

conceal

transitive verb

con·​ceal

1

: to prevent disclosure of or fail to disclose (as a provision in a contract) especially in violation of a duty to disclose

2

a

: to place out of sight

Note: A weapon need only be placed out of ordinary observation in order to be considered a concealed weapon.

b

: to prevent or hinder recognition, discovery, or recovery of

concealing stolen property

concealment noun