guises

plural of guise
1
2
as in costumes
clothing chosen as appropriate for a specific situation she felt as though she should be wearing some sort of Germanic guise, complete with dirndl, for the fall festival featuring traditional German food and drink

Synonyms & Similar Words

3
as in masks
clothing put on to hide one's true identity or imitate someone or something else he sneaked into the castle to rescue Ivanhoe in the guise of a priest coming to give Ivanhoe his last rites

Synonyms & Similar Words

4

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 guises Throughout the weekend, Dudamel embraced the worlds of Hollywood, Latin music in many guises and old-fashioned rock. — Classical Music Critic, Los Angeles Times, 26 Aug. 2026 With their traditional, legacy rivals — the Manchester clubs, Liverpool, Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur — in various guises of transition, Arsenal are suddenly the team to beat and the Emirates is suddenly a library of sound; noise please. — George Caulkin, New York Times, 25 Aug. 2026 Somewhere between a sandal and a ballet flat, caged silhouettes come in all manner of guises. — Sarah Leigh Bannerman, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 July 2026 Opponents of affirmative action, who suspect that the process is still continuing under other guises, could seek to replicate the winning strategy of the Harvard and UNC cases, if testing data show large, unexplainable gaps in academic preparation among different student groups. — Idrees Kahloon, The Atlantic, 9 June 2026 Dwayne Johnson is a confident guy and has donned any number of ridiculous guises during his Saturday Night Live hosting gigs over the years. — Jesse Hassenger, Entertainment Weekly, 28 May 2026 Over the years, audiences have seen the Negotiator under many guises, like a martial arts expert, a cowboy, and even a mariachi musician. — Colson Thayer, PEOPLE, 12 May 2026 Farage has been through various guises. — Isaac Chotiner, New Yorker, 8 May 2026 By the time my story about him was published in the November 2023 issue of Vanity Fair, Aryeh Dodelson, and all of his guises, had disappeared from the face of the earth. — Nate Freeman, Vanity Fair, 3 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for guises
Noun
  • Suzhou MoCA Curved glass and warm-toned stainless steel have been used across the structure and its facades.
    — Abhimanyu Ghoshal, New Atlas, 21 Sep. 2026
  • Pastel Colonial buildings lined the streets, their facades glowing in the afternoon sun, while the plazas hummed with life.
    — Chantelle Kincy, Travel + Leisure, 19 Sep. 2026
Noun
  • Razooli also starred, edited and made the costumes and props for Riddle of Fire.
    — Anthony D'Alessandro, Deadline, 28 Sep. 2026
  • Varga contributed costumes, props, sets and visual artwork to Gwar, which became infamous beyond the metal world for their grotesque (if good-natured) theatrics, which included disemboweling effigies of religious and political figures onstage.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 28 Sep. 2026
Noun
  • One person at a time, in private, where the masks can come off.
    — Mabel Yiu, Forbes.com, 25 Sep. 2026
  • When people returned in person, masks sometimes made facial communication more difficult.
    — Jeff LeBlanc, The Conversation, 25 Sep. 2026
Noun
  • The Pirates' Kirby Yates made his first career start after 517 relief appearances.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 27 Sep. 2026
  • Tracking those appearances could help astronomers map the cluster's mass and refine measurements of the universe's expansion rate.
    — Samantha Mathewson, Space.com, 25 Sep. 2026
Noun
  • Conference expansion has shattered pretenses to regional coherence.
    — Geraldo L. Cadava, The Atlantic, 19 Sep. 2026
  • The strategic mistake of invading Iraq on false pretenses was then compounded by tactical errors.
    — Foreign Affairs, Foreign Affairs, 18 Aug. 2026
Noun
  • Canonero created over 70 original dresses for Dunst’s Marie Antoinette alone, and eventually won the Academy Award for Best Costume Design.
    — Marlow Stern, Variety, 30 Sep. 2026
  • Jersey tops start at about 400 euros; dresses range from 650 to 1,000 euros; jackets from 1,200 to 1,400 euros, and the most elaborate dresses top 2,000 euros.
    — Lily Templeton, Footwear News, 29 Sep. 2026
Noun
  • The lightweight cream disguises dark circles, redness, blemishes, and uneven tone, melting in seamlessly enough to blend across larger areas in place of foundation.
    — Christa Joanna Lee, Allure, 18 Sep. 2026
  • Jones’ system is multiple but predicated largely on Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores’ high-press scheme, with plenty of pre-snap disguises, overloaded fronts and interchangeable assignments.
    — Nicki Jhabvala, New York Times, 14 Sep. 2026
Noun
  • Think again about kids wagging their fingers in each other’s faces on a playground.
    — Mary Randolph, Scientific American, 29 Sep. 2026
  • Thybulle — a two-time NBA All-Defensive team honoree — guards Quentin Grimes and Collin Sexton and forward Ziaire Williams are expected to be among the new faces responsible for taking the Lakers’ defense to the next level.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 29 Sep. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Guises.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/guises. Accessed 3 Oct. 2026.

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