Meaning & use
closet
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Meanings
nouncountable
A small space or cabinet for storing clothes, linens, or other household items.
Grammar: Countable; can be used with 'a' or in the plural: 'a closet', 'two closets'.
Patterns
- in the closet
- a clothes closet
She hung her coat in the closet.
The house has a large walk-in closet in the master bedroom.
adjectivebefore a noun
Kept secret or hidden from public knowledge.
Grammar: Used before a noun: 'a closet alcoholic'. Not used after a verb.
Patterns
- a closet something
He is a closet fan of romantic comedies.
She was a closet poet, never showing her work to anyone.
Word forms
| plural | closets |
|---|
Common combinations
- come out of the closet
- He finally came out of the closet and told his family he was gay.
- walk-in closet
- Their new apartment has a spacious walk-in closet.
- closet door
- Please close the closet door.
- closet space
- This old house doesn't have much closet space.
Synonyms and how they differ
Commonly confused: closet or clothes?
closet vs clothes
Clothes are items you wear; a closet is where you store them. They sound similar but are different words.
Practice
What does 'come out of the closet' mean?
Choose one answer.
The idiom 'come out of the closet' means to reveal a hidden fact about oneself, especially one's sexual orientation. The other options are literal and do not match the figurative meaning.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “closet”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.