cloak
Americannoun
verb (used with object)
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to cover with or as if with a cloak.
She arrived at the opera cloaked in green velvet.
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to hide; conceal.
The mission was cloaked in mystery.
noun
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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
- cloakless adjective
- undercloak noun
- well-cloaked adjective
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.
Turning to his anxious helmsman, Pericles took his cloak and held it in front of the man’s eyes, asking if this made him frightened.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 10, 2026
"The night the cloak came off," blazed a headline in the Indian Express newspaper.
From Barron's • Feb. 23, 2026
She convinced him to give her whatever land her cloak could cover.
From BBC • Jan. 31, 2026
Most of those selected to wear the killer’s cloak in “The Traitors” come to this conclusion, but not as woefully as Rausch.
From Salon • Jan. 28, 2026
He snatched his cloak from the ground and hooked it around his neck.
From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman
Definitions 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.
