cloak 1 of 2

cloak

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verb

Synonym Chooser

How does the verb cloak differ from other similar words?

The words disguise and mask are common synonyms of cloak. While all three words mean "to alter the dress or appearance of so as to conceal the identity or true nature," cloak suggests a means of hiding a movement or an intention.

cloaked their maneuvers in secrecy

When is it sensible to use disguise instead of cloak?

While the synonyms disguise and cloak are close in meaning, disguise implies a change in appearance or behavior that misleads by presenting a different apparent identity.

disguised herself as a peasant

When is mask a more appropriate choice than cloak?

In some situations, the words mask and cloak are roughly equivalent. However, mask suggests some often obvious means of hiding or disguising something.

smiling to mask his discontent

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of cloak
Noun
In photos from the scene, Vernon was sharply dressed in a suit and tie and held a pastry in his hand, as a small man in a violet cloak appears to fall over himself right in front of Vernon. Julia Moore, PEOPLE, 23 Sep. 2025 What works so well here is how a cloak of ambiguity is constantly draped over the narrative, pulled off at just the right moment to keep us hooked. Vincent Acovino, NPR, 22 Sep. 2025
Verb
People make close, intense bonds when stuck in the Big Brother house together, and Vince and Morgan’s dynamic crosses more lines with each passing day, emotional cheating threatening to tip into physical even as Vince continues to hopelessly cloak his feelings in flimsy analogies and code phrases. Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 27 Sep. 2025 Our foul, flatulent father-figure may exaggerate a bit when belittling his enemies (and friends, for that matter), but cloaked under his aura of filth — like an adult Pig-Pen’s toxic dust cloud — rests a core truth. Ben Travers, IndieWire, 24 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for cloak
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cloak
Noun
  • Tianna wore her hair in an elegant updo with a sheer veil.
    Raven Brunner, PEOPLE, 17 Oct. 2025
  • The veil is the nudity and the sexuality.
    Amanda Petrusich, New Yorker, 15 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • Moments that remind you that not every hero needs a cape or superhuman strength to uplift the world.
    Carl Lamarre, Billboard, 14 Oct. 2025
  • The style pairs perfectly with mid-season looks, from light September looks to heavier coats and capes in December.
    Teresa Romero Martínez, Glamour, 11 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • The perpetrator may have better disguised their actions, or stalking behavior might just be less visible, like surveilling a person online.
    Shelly Bradbury, Denver Post, 13 Oct. 2025
  • That job will only ever be a trojan horse to disguise the idea that started to flow from your pen night after night.
    Dana Harris-Bridson, IndieWire, 13 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Her open limbs dangle all over the velvet, her pubic triangle hardly concealed.
    Doreen St. Félix, New Yorker, 11 Oct. 2025
  • What begins as a crime caper morphs into an unexpected rom-com as Jeff spends more time with Leigh’s family and even joins her local church, all while concealing his real identity and living behind a display of bicycles at Leigh’s workplace.
    Keaton Bell, Vogue, 11 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • Some wear kittles, white burial shrouds, to signify repentance, according to History.
    Krys'tal Griffin, Freep.com, 2 Oct. 2025
  • Moraes developed computer models to simulate draping a sheet on both a 3D human form and a bas-relief carving to test which version most closely matched the figure preserved in the shroud.
    ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 31 Aug. 2025
Noun
  • While the social media pages associated with the project are no longer active, organizations like PALS and local nonprofits have picked up the mantle, spreading the word, offering support and raising money for relevant organizations.
    Mary Walrath-Holdridge, USA Today, 15 Oct. 2025
  • Previous studies of lunar samples have found the ratio of different isotopes of oxygen in the moon's mantle broadly match that on Earth, suggesting the moon is formed mostly of debris from Earth.
    Keith Cooper, Space.com, 13 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Just in the past two winters, deceptively average rain and snowfall totals statewide masked the extremely dry conditions in Southern California that contributed to devastating fires as well as flood events across the state from powerful atmospheric river events.
    Anna Skinner, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Oct. 2025
  • He was hit with a $23,186 bill for face-masking and unsportsmanlike conduct penalties during a Week 1 game against the Green Bay Packers.
    Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 13 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Of course, the bags don’t actually hide anything; in fact, they are reserved specifically for, and definitively signal, the drinking of alcohol.
    Joshua Rothman, New Yorker, 14 Oct. 2025
  • The measure, which has failed to make it through the Legislature twice before, would require insurance companies to cover additional screenings, like an MRI, for women diagnosed with breast tissue that can hide cancer from traditional mammograms.
    Molly Beck, jsonline.com, 14 Oct. 2025

Cite this Entry

“Cloak.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cloak. Accessed 20 Oct. 2025.

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