Conceals

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Keeps something out of sight or prevents it from being discovered
2. Covers or keeps secret something so it cannot be seen or known
3. Prevents others from seeing or knowing the existence or true nature of something

Etymology: "Conceals" is the third-person singular present form of "conceal," so its history is that of the verb itself. The verb came into Middle English as "concelen," borrowed from Old French "conceler," meaning "hide" or "disguise." That Old French word traces back to Latin "concēlāre," which meant "to carefully disguise," and the Latin verb is built from the prefix "con-," intensifying the sense, and "celāre," "to hide." The Latin root "celāre" also gave English "celare"-based words such as "celestial"? No, that is a different root, so the link is only through the shared Latin verb "celāre." The important point is that "conceal" carried the Latin sense of deliberate, thorough hiding, which is the sense English kept.

Synonyms: hides, covers, disguises, camouflages, shrouds

Antonyms: reveals, discloses, exposes, unveils, shows