Meaning & use
shroud
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Meanings
nouncountable
A cloth or garment used to wrap a dead body for burial.
Grammar: A countable noun: one shroud, two shrouds. Often used with 'in a shroud'.
Patterns
- wrap a body in a shroud
- a burial shroud
The body was wrapped in a simple white shroud.
In ancient Egypt, a shroud was often decorated with prayers.
The museum displayed a medieval shroud made of linen.
nouncountablefigurative
Something that covers or hides something else, especially a layer of mist, smoke, or darkness.
Grammar: Often used figuratively: a shroud of mist, a shroud of secrecy.
Patterns
- a shroud of mist
- a shroud of secrecy
- under a shroud of
A shroud of mist covered the valley at dawn.
The whole affair was kept under a shroud of secrecy.
A shroud of smoke hung over the burning building.
verbtransitivefigurative
To cover or conceal something completely, as if with a cloth.
Grammar: Takes an object: shroud something (in something). Often used in the passive: be shrouded in.
Patterns
- shroud something in something
- be shrouded in mystery
- be shrouded in mist
Thick fog shrouded the mountain top.
The details of the deal were shrouded in mystery.
Darkness shrouded the streets after the power cut.
Word forms
| plural | shrouds |
|---|---|
| third person singular | shrouds |
| past tense | shrouded |
| past participle | shrouded |
| -ing form | shrouding |
Common combinations
- shrouded in mystery
- The disappearance of the ship remains shrouded in mystery.
- a shroud of secrecy
- The committee operated under a shroud of secrecy.
- shrouded in mist
- The castle was shrouded in mist.
- shrouded in darkness
- The room was shrouded in darkness.
Synonyms and how they differ
- veil
- A veil is a piece of thin cloth worn over the face; a shroud is thicker and used for a corpse or as a metaphor for concealment.
- cloak
- A cloak is an outer garment; as a verb it means to hide, similar to 'shroud', but often suggests a deliberate act of hiding.
- cover
- A general word for putting something over an object; 'shroud' is more literary and suggests complete concealment.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: shroud or shred?
shroud vs shred
A shred is a small torn piece; a shroud is a large cloth for wrapping a body.
Practice
The origins of the ancient monument are still ___ in mystery.
Choose one answer.
The passive construction 'are shrouded in' needs the past participle 'shrouded'. 'Shroud' is the base form, 'shrouding' is the -ing form, and 'shrouds' is the third-person singular, none of which fit after 'are'.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “shroud”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.