1. (n.) Something hung up, or spread out, to intercept the view, and hide an object; a cover; a curtain; esp., a screen, usually of gauze, crape, or similar diaphanous material, to hide or protect the face.
2. (n.) A cover; disguise; a mask; a pretense.
3. (n.) The calyptra of mosses.
4. (n.) A membrane connecting the margin of the pileus of a mushroom with the stalk; -- called also velum.
5. (n.) A covering for a person or thing; as, a nun's veil; a paten veil; an altar veil.
6. (n.) Same as Velum, 3.
7. (n.) To throw a veil over; to cover with a veil.
8. (n.) Fig.: To invest; to cover; to hide; to conceal.
Thesaurus Entries
alibi, apology, apply to, awning, bamboo curtain, barrier of secrecy, beach umbrella, becloud, befog, blackout, blanket, blind, block, bosom, camouflage, canopy, censorship, classify, cloak, clothe, cloud, coat, color, coloring, conceal, cope, cover, cover story, cover up, cover-up, coverage, covering, covert, coverture, cowl, cowling, curtain, device, disguise, dissemble, distract attention from, drape, drapery, draw the curtains, eclipse, enclose, ensconce, enshroud, envelop, enwrap, excuse, facade, false front, feint, file and forget, film, front, gloss, gloss over, guise, handle, hanging, hide, hold out on, hood, housing, hush-up, in petto, invest, iron curtain, ironbound security, keep, keep back, keep between us, keep buttoned up, keep close, keep dark, keep from, keep in ignorance, keep mum, keep secret, keep snug, keep under cover, keep under wraps, lame excuse, lay on, lay over, light shield, locus standi, make no sign, mantilla, mantle, mask, muffle, never let on, not give away, not tell, oath of secrecy, obduce, obfuscate, obscure, occult, official secrecy, ostensible motive, overlay, overshadow, overspread, pall, parasol, play dumb, poor excuse, pretense, pretension, pretext, protestation, public motive, put on, put-off, refuge, repression, screen, scum, seal of secrecy, secrete, security, semblance, shade, shader, shadow, sham, shelter, shield, show, shroud, shutter, slur over, smoke screen, smothering, spread over, stalking-horse, stifling, stratagem, subterfuge, sunblind, sunshade, superimpose, superpose, suppression, trick, umbrella, varnish, veil of secrecy, veiler, veiling, vestment, whitewash, withhold, wrap, wraps, yashmak
