as in hidden
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as in housed
to close or shut in by or as if by barriers
he closeted himself in his study, vowing not to emerge until he had finished the term paper
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of closeted
Glenn Garner, Deadline, 19 Feb. 2026
In 1955, Universal arranged for closeted gay heartthrob Rock Hudson to be married off to his agent’s secretary amid swirling speculation about his sexuality.
—Chas Newkey-Burden, TheWeek, 17 Feb. 2026
Inkoo Kang, New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2025
Or perhaps the speaker could recognize that a cousin at the table may be closeted, and take it upon themselves to model how to push back against transphobia.
—Lee Bebout, The Conversation, 16 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for closeted
Adjective
Series creator Sam Levinson remembered the actor, who played closeted patriarch Cal Jacobs on the HBO drama, sharing a statement with Deadline after Dane’s death on Thursday.
—Glenn Garner, Deadline, 19 Feb. 2026
In 1955, Universal arranged for closeted gay heartthrob Rock Hudson to be married off to his agent’s secretary amid swirling speculation about his sexuality.
—Chas Newkey-Burden, TheWeek, 17 Feb. 2026
Verb
Dale, who was closeted at the time of his death, leaves behind notes stashed inside his treasured first-edition books hinting that his wife (Jeanne Tripplehorn) may have had something to do with his ostensible suicide.
—Inkoo Kang, New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2025
Or perhaps the speaker could recognize that a cousin at the table may be closeted, and take it upon themselves to model how to push back against transphobia.
—Lee Bebout, The Conversation, 16 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for closeted
Recent Examples of Synonyms for closeted
Adjective
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While none of this amounts to conscious communication, the hidden network allows plants to share resources and information, helping forests survive as interconnected communities.—
Samantha Agate,
Kansas City Star,
30 Mar. 2026
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An office with a wood-burning fireplace and a hidden service kitchen are also located on this level.—
Demetrius Simms,
Robb Report,
30 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Now 57, Vogelsang has served 27 years of a 355-years-to-life sentence and is housed at Valley State Prison in Chowchilla, state records show.—
Sharon Bernstein,
Sacbee.com,
27 Mar. 2026
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King sits in Clay County custody, currently housed in Platte County Jail, in lieu of payment of a $2 million cash bond.—
Laura Bauer,
Kansas City Star,
26 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Tel Aviv, Israel — Undermining this moment of relief for many repressed Iranians is that killing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is a perilously simple fix to a very complex problem.—
Nick Paton Walsh,
CNN Money,
1 Mar. 2026
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And that probably comes from seeing women in my life who have been so repressed that the eyes become their only real means of communication.—
Kennedy French,
Variety,
28 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Rappers, in particular, are breaking out of the narrow roles they were once confined to.—
Grant Rindner,
Rolling Stone,
25 Mar. 2026
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The damage would not be confined to Los Angeles.—
Joseph M. Singer,
Deadline,
24 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Brooks is still wont to assume that social crises are a function of our personal habits, not economic or political injustice, and his methodological tics are the same as ever.—
Becca Rothfeld,
New Yorker,
30 Mar. 2026
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Wacha kept the Braves off the scoreboard while Salvador Perez provided the offense, hitting his first homer of the season and snapping a personal 15-inning scoreless streak.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
29 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The primary suite is the crown jewel of the space—encased in a wall of glass that welcomes natural light at every angle from the living room just below.—
Kristin Braswell,
Architectural Digest,
23 Mar. 2026
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By the end of the day, the sculpture was encased by plywood.—
Andy Rose,
CNN Money,
19 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Watch it for its skin-deep enticement, its powerful visual devices, but also its concealed malignancy.—
Sally Jenkins,
The Atlantic,
27 Oct. 2025
Verb
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My friend Thai, whose parents were part of the Weather Underground leadership, remembers his father, Jeff Jones, coming home one day to find their family’s Hoboken apartment surrounded by cops—a fire inspector had spotted his tiny crop of marijuana plants on the fire escape.—
Zayd Ayers Dohrn,
New Yorker,
28 Mar. 2026
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More than a dozen police and emergency vehicles surrounded a U-Haul truck cordoned off with caution tape outside the stadium.—
Suryatapa Chakraborty,
Dallas Morning News,
28 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Closeted.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/closeted. Accessed 1 Apr. 2026.
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