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shroud

 - 3 dictionary results

shroud

  [shroud]
Use shroud in a Sentence
–noun
1. a cloth or sheet in which a corpse is wrapped for burial.
2. something that covers or conceals like a garment: a shroud of rain.
3. Nautical. any of a number of taut ropes or wires converging from both sides on the head of a lower or upper mast of the outer end of a bowsprit to steady it against lateral sway: a part of the standing rigging.
4. Also called shroud line. Aeronautics. any of a number of suspension cords of a parachute attaching the load to the canopy.
5. Also called shrouding. Machinery.
a. (on a nonmetallic gear) an extended metal rim enclosing the ends of the teeth on either side.
b. (on a water wheel) one of two rings of boards or plates enclosing the buckets at their ends.
6. Rocketry. a cone-shaped shield that protects the payload of a launch vehicle.
–verb (used with object)
7. to wrap or clothe for burial; enshroud.
8. to cover; hide from view.
9. to veil, as in obscurity or mystery: They shrouded their past lives in an effort to forget.
10. to provide (a water wheel) with a shroud.
11. Obsolete. to shelter.
–verb (used without object)
12. Archaic. to take shelter.
Origin:
bef. 1000; (n.) ME; OE scrūd; c. ON skrūth; akin to shred; (v.) ME shrouden, deriv. of the n.; r. ME shriden, OE scrȳdan, deriv. of scrūd

Related forms:
shroudless, adjective
shroudlike, adjective

Synonyms:
1. winding sheet. 8. conceal, screen.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To shroud
shroud   (shroud)   
n.  

  1. A cloth used to wrap a body for burial; a winding sheet.

  2. Something that conceals, protects, or screens: under a shroud of fog.

    1. Nautical One of a set of ropes or wire cables stretched from the masthead to the sides of a vessel to support the mast.

    2. A similar supporting line for a smokestack or comparable structure.

    3. One of the ropes connecting the harness and canopy of a parachute.

v.   shroud·ed, shroud·ing, shrouds

v.   tr.

  1. To wrap (a corpse) in burial clothing.

  2. To shut off from sight; screen. See Synonyms at block.

  3. Archaic To shelter; protect.

v.   intr. Archaic
To take cover; find shelter.

[Middle English schrud, garment, from Old English scrūd.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

shroud 
O.E. scrud "a garment, clothing," from W.Gmc. *skruthan, from P.Gmc. *skrud- "cut" (cf. O.N. skruð "shroud of a ship," Dan., Swed. skrud "dress, attire"), variant of *skreud- "to cut," related to O.E. screade (see shred). Meaning "cloth or sheet for burial" first attested 1570. The verb is attested from c.1300, originally "to clothe;" meaning "to hide from view, conceal" (trans.) is attested from 1412.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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