cloak
Americannoun
-
cloaks
plural
verb (used with object)
-
cloaks,
present (3rd person singular)
-
cloaked,
past participle, past
-
cloaking
present participle
-
to cover with or as if with a cloak.
She arrived at the opera cloaked in green velvet.
-
to hide; conceal.
The mission was cloaked in mystery.
noun
-
a wraplike outer garment fastened at the throat and falling straight from the shoulders
-
something that covers or conceals
verb
-
to cover with or as if with a cloak
-
to hide or disguise
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
cloaksimple
-
cloakssimple
-
have cloakedperfect
-
has cloakedperfect
-
am cloakingprogressive
-
are cloakingprogressive
-
is cloakingprogressive
-
have been cloakingperfect progressive
-
has been cloakingperfect progressive
Past
-
cloakedsimple
-
had cloakedperfect
-
was cloakingprogressive
-
were cloakingprogressive
-
had been cloakingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of cloak
1175–1225; Middle English cloke (< Old French ) < Medieval Latin cloca, variant of clocca bell-shaped cape, bell; see clock 1
Explanation
A cloak is anything that conceals or hides something, like an over-sized, dark raincoat you wear when you don't want your friends to see you're going to the movies without them. As a noun, a cloak is usually a loose piece of clothing that you wear over your other clothes, like a cape or a gown. It especially refers to an outer garment that you might wear while traveling in order to protect your outfit or to conceal your identity. As a verb, to cloak is to conceal or hide something. If you were a famous person who wanted to go out alone, you might cloak your identity with a cloak.
Vocabulary lists containing cloak
The Balcony Scene from "Romeo and Juliet"
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"Encounter"
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Unit 2: Pivotal Words and Phrases
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
He has also claimed he was illegally removed from Libya to stand trial in the United States after "a cloak and dagger operation conducted in the dead of night".
From BBC ● Oct. 15, 2026
The benefits and risk cloak more central driving factors among AI titans: the will to power, the desire for wealth, the hunger to be in charge.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026
The invisibility offered a protective cloak, allowing his existential confessionals to develop free of the expectations placed upon Sage Elsesser, pro skateboarder.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 7, 2026
But his intimidating onyx armor obscures all that, much in the way Darth Vader’s helmet and cloak overcompensate for his shriveled form.
From Salon ● Aug. 2, 2026
As powerful as the giant’s scream was, it didn’t even ruffle the man’s cloak.
From "Half Upon a Time" by James Riley
The reality competition show “The Traitors” is transforming into a sprawling entertainment franchise, with an official board game, signature hooded cloaks, and live immersive experiences.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 17, 2026
Irvan Maulana has struggled with shortness of breath and a cough as wildfire smoke cloaks the Indonesian city of Palangkaraya.
From Barron's ● Oct. 15, 2026
"At night, we had to put on anti-drone cloaks to protect us against thermal cameras, but they would last for 20 minutes at the most."
From BBC ● May 17, 2026
Here, the evildoers receive sumptuous cloaks along with their metaphorical daggers.
From Salon ● Jan. 28, 2026
They took away some small weapons—a dagger for each of them—and some long votola cloaks that Alfhercht wordlessly insisted they take.
From Anya and the Nightingale by Sofiya Pasternack
It’s cloaked language, but a nod to NIMBYs.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
Whatever happens will be cloaked in lies — and followed by gaslighting.
From Salon ● Aug. 18, 2026
The city has been awash with fans cloaked in black - wearing T-shirts in tribute to Osbourne or Black Sabbath - visiting sites in the city most connected to the heavy metal icon.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
In moments when opportunity is cloaked in nuance, we have long relied upon John Marshall, Goldman Sachs’ derivatives strategist.
From Barron's ● Jun. 10, 2026
At this those faces, cloaked in desolation upon the waste sea beach, were bared; their eyes turned toward me and the mighty lighting, foreseeing pleasure, one by one.
From "The Odyssey" by Homer
"This ability finds applications ranging from signal processing to invisible cloaking."
From Science Daily ● Jun. 12, 2026
I’m including the comments in full because of how out of character they were for a Fed chair best known for cloaking his future decisions:
From Barron's ● Mar. 18, 2026
I share this anecdote to illustrate the pitfalls of cloaking real-world crises in elaborate settings, costumes and dystopian oddity.
From Salon ● Jul. 21, 2024
This is a type of online fraud called "cloaking", whereby malicious adverts are able to get past a social media firm's review stage because the fraudsters have hidden their intensions.
From BBC ● Apr. 24, 2024
I reached up to adjust my chador, cloaking myself from him.
From "Amal Unbound" by Aisha Saeed
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
