- disguise
- disguise vb Disguise, cloak, mask, dissemble, camouflage are comparable when meaning to assume a dress, an ap-pearance, or an expression that conceals one's identity, intention, or true feeling.Disguise, which basically implies an alteration in one's dress and appearance, frequently retains this implication with the added suggestion either of concealment of identity or of the assumption (as on the stage) of another identity{
escape captivity disguised as a woman
}{they disguise themselves as Turks for a joke
}The term, however, may apply to a feeling, an intention, or a motive when one's words, expression, or acts imply a contrary reaction{I disguised my impatience and suspicion of him and waited— Hudson
}{however we may disguise it by veiling words we do not and cannot carry out the distinction between legislative and executive action with mathematical precision— Justice Holmes
}{our author, disguised as Jonathan Oldstyle, contributed a series of letters . . . protesting with admirable chivalry against jesting at maiden ladies— Commins
}Cloak implies the assumption of something which covers and conceals identity or nature{the appearance of goodwill cloaked a sinister intention
}{intolerance and public irresponsibility cannot be cloaked in the shining armor of rectitude and righteousness— A. E. Stevenson
}Mask implies a disguise, comparable to a covering for the face or head, which prevents recognition of a thing's true character, quality, or presence{icy spots masked by newly fallen snow
}{masking with a smile the vain regrets that in their hearts arose— Morris
}{his pessimism . . . became an obvious pose, an attempt to mask his porky complacence— Hicks
}Dissemble stresses simulation for the purpose of deceiving as well as disguising; it, therefore, is the preferred term when actual deception is achieved{Ross bears, or dissembles, his disappointment better than I expected of him— Gray
}{the Scripture moveth us . . . to acknowledge and confess our manifold sins and wickedness; and that we should not dissemble nor cloak them before the face of Almighty God— Book of Common Prayer
}Camouflage in its basic military use implies a disguising (as with paint, garnished nets, or foliage) that reduces the visibility or conceals the nature or location of a potential target (as a ship, a factory, or an airfield), and in its common extended use tends to imply a comparable disguising quality or element, often specifically one that tends to minimize some undesirable aspect (as of a person or his acts or attributes){Soulé is five feet five inches tall and . . . inclines to stoutness, but his erect bearing and quick movements tend to camouflage this— Wechsberg
}{the absolute character of these dictatorships was camouflaged somewhat by an elaborate parliamentary system—C. E. Black & E. C. Helmreich
}Analogous words: conceal, *hide: *misrepresent, belie, falsify, garble: *assume, pretend, feign, counterfeit, sham, simulate, affect
New Dictionary of Synonyms. 2014.
