Cover-up

noun

noun ·3 syllables ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    An attempt to conceal or disguise something, especially a wrongdoing or a mistake.

    "Truthfulness means no lies and no cover-ups. Compassion means being kind and helpful to others. Forbearance means being able to tolerate and suffer, and not fight back."

  2. 2
    concealment that attempts to prevent something scandalous from becoming public wordnet
  3. 3
    An item of clothing to be worn over a swimsuit while not in the water.

    "The women usually wore bikini tops with shorts, swimsuits underneath cover-ups or just swimsuits. Men came in various types of trunks, from traditional boxers, to Speedos, to G-string trunks that showcased their packages."

Synonyms

All synonyms
alibiapologyblindcamouflagecloakcolor

Example

More examples

"The big promotion of that company's stock was just a cover-up to hide their impending bankruptcy."

Etymology

From the verb cover up.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.