1
2
as in veils
something that covers or conceals like a piece of cloth
his unexpected friendliness is just a mask, for he always has an ulterior motive
Synonyms & Similar Words
1
as in disguises
to change the dress or looks of so as to conceal true identity
the federal agents masked their surveillance vehicle so that it looked like an ordinary moving van
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in hides
to keep secret or shut off from view
masked his real motives for wanting to see the house that was for sale
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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 masks
Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 8 Sep. 2025
Agents dressed in black, with masks covering their faces, stood in formation on the tarmac.
—Jonathan Blitzer, New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2025
After a treacherous night in which Daryl had to remove a piece of metal from Carol’s shoulder and the boat was ransacked by equestrians in bull-horn masks, the twosome put the walking back in The Walking Dead.
—Charlie Mason, TVLine, 7 Sep. 2025
The aforementioned masks, for instance, hasten strange visions for Blakey, but the film’s hard boundary between his dreams and waking life sap these sequences of all tension.
—Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 6 Sep. 2025
Why show Franz playing tug-of-war naked at a sanitarium with a bunch of men wearing animal masks?
—Sam Bodrojan, IndieWire, 5 Sep. 2025
Take, for example, the matter of masks.
—The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 5 Sep. 2025
The apparently simple farmhouse masks a far more complex—and modernist—interior world.
—Joseph Giovannini, Architectural Digest, 4 Sep. 2025
Johnson's order instructs federal officers operating in Chicago to wear body cameras, refrain from wearing masks, and clearly identify themselves by name and badge number.
—Amanda Castro, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Aug. 2025
Julia Bonavita, FOXNews.com, 7 Sep. 2025
When planetary scientists say the interior of Mars resembles a rocky road brownie more than a piece of buttery shortbread, the tasty metaphor masks billions of years of geological violence.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 28 Aug. 2025
The initial euphoria of rate reductions masks significant challenges in achieving meaningful returns through traditional bond allocations.
—Elie Nour, Forbes.com, 14 Aug. 2025
Noun
Invisible pollutants unleashed To simulate real-world conditions, the researchers placed unused masks in beakers of ultra-pure water and left them at room temperature for 24 hours.
—Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 8 Sep. 2025
Agents dressed in black, with masks covering their faces, stood in formation on the tarmac.
—Jonathan Blitzer, New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2025
After a treacherous night in which Daryl had to remove a piece of metal from Carol’s shoulder and the boat was ransacked by equestrians in bull-horn masks, the twosome put the walking back in The Walking Dead.
—Charlie Mason, TVLine, 7 Sep. 2025
The aforementioned masks, for instance, hasten strange visions for Blakey, but the film’s hard boundary between his dreams and waking life sap these sequences of all tension.
—Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 6 Sep. 2025
Why show Franz playing tug-of-war naked at a sanitarium with a bunch of men wearing animal masks?
—Sam Bodrojan, IndieWire, 5 Sep. 2025
Take, for example, the matter of masks.
—The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 5 Sep. 2025
The apparently simple farmhouse masks a far more complex—and modernist—interior world.
—Joseph Giovannini, Architectural Digest, 4 Sep. 2025
Johnson's order instructs federal officers operating in Chicago to wear body cameras, refrain from wearing masks, and clearly identify themselves by name and badge number.
—Amanda Castro, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Aug. 2025
Verb
What is framed as independence often masks a deeper vulnerability.
—Julia Bonavita, FOXNews.com, 7 Sep. 2025
When planetary scientists say the interior of Mars resembles a rocky road brownie more than a piece of buttery shortbread, the tasty metaphor masks billions of years of geological violence.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 28 Aug. 2025
The initial euphoria of rate reductions masks significant challenges in achieving meaningful returns through traditional bond allocations.
—Elie Nour, Forbes.com, 14 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for masks
Noun
-
One of the dance performances is based around the ritual of dancers changing in and out of their costumes.—
Hikmat Mohammed,
Footwear News,
5 Sep. 2025
-
The 11 costumes on this list are varied, with classics and modern choices.—
Christopher Murray
may earn a commission if you buy through our referral links. This content was created by a team that works independently from the Fox newsroom.,
FOXNews.com,
5 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The above-and-beyond production design and costumes are filled with both period-appropriate lushness and totally idiosyncratic touches, like sarcophagi that showcase the naked faces of the dead and several flowing gowns that resemble full-length veils.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
9 Sep. 2025
-
One through line between the films and the series are the headdresses, veils and hair jewelry.—
Rachel Elspeth Gross,
Forbes.com,
16 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Viola disguises herself as a boy named Cesario and becomes a servant to Duke Orsino (Khris Davis).—
Patrick Ryan,
USA Today,
24 Aug. 2025
-
Denzel plays the earnest private with a secret with a smart, eager-to-please manner that disguises the cunning and danger underneath.—
Tim Grierson,
Vulture,
15 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
The fog may roll in, but the coastline never hides for long.—
Lauren Mowery,
Forbes.com,
8 Sep. 2025
-
Maddie hides her binging and purging from Deena and Jake, lying about being pregnant to distract her husband from what’s really going on.—
Jourdain Searles,
HollywoodReporter,
7 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
While invisibility cloaks are a gee-whiz application, metamaterials now offer real-world commercial applications such as new antenna technologies for mobile phones.—
IEEE Spectrum,
IEEE Spectrum,
7 Dec. 2018
Verb
-
Guests arrive via a winding, jungle-like path that conceals the building from view until the final turn, when the view suddenly opens to a giant round portico, four stories high and 120 feet across that appears to float despite its 3,000-ton weight.—
Katharina Kotrba,
Forbes.com,
24 Aug. 2025
-
Find those iconic horses emblazoned in silver onto the oakwood base of their Dry Air Diffuser, which conceals a discrete fan and ventilation system.—
Austa Somvichian-Clausen,
Robb Report,
14 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Smoke from western wildfires shrouds downtown buildings with the Cheyenne Mountain in the background on August 12 in Colorado Springs.—
Hollie Silverman,
MSNBC Newsweek,
23 Aug. 2025
-
The plastic bodywork has been sharpened all around, too, with the tank shrouds now reaching the front forks.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
15 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
The delicate curtain slightly obscures a digital color photograph of a drawing by a museum employee reimagining Picasso’s painting.—
Natasha Gural,
Forbes.com,
9 Sep. 2025
-
Relatively high coverage at the national and state levels obscures the fact that in some local areas, vaccine coverage is low due to high numbers of exemptions, putting clusters of children at greater risk of disease.—
Simon Williams,
Time,
8 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Masks.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/masks. Accessed 12 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share