Idioms for cover

Origin of cover

1200–50; Middle English coveren < Old French covrir < Latin cooperīre to cover completely, equivalent to co- co- + operīre to shut, close, cover ( op-, apparently for ob- ob- + -erīre; see aperient)

synonym study for cover

37, 38. Cover, protection, screen, shelter mean a defense against harm or danger and a provision for safety. The main idea in cover is that of concealment, as in darkness, in a wood, or behind something: The ground troops were left without cover when the air force was withdrawn. Screen refers especially to something behind which one can hide: A well-aimed artillary fire formed a screen for ground operations. Protection and shelter emphasize the idea of a guard or defense, a shield against injury or death. A protection is any such shield: In World War II, an air cover of airplanes served as a protection for troops. A shelter is something that covers over and acts as a place of refuge: An abandoned monastery acted as a shelter.

OTHER WORDS FROM cover

British Dictionary definitions for take cover

cover
/ (ˈkʌvə) /

verb (mainly tr)

noun

See also cover-up

Derived forms of cover

coverable, adjective coverer, noun coverless, adjective

Word Origin for cover

C13: from Old French covrir, from Latin cooperīre to cover completely, from operīre to cover over

Idioms and Phrases with take cover (1 of 2)

take cover

Seek protection, find a hiding place, as in It started to pour so we took cover under the trees, or He wanted to avoid the reporters so we said he could take cover in our summer cottage. This term uses cover in the sense of “shelter” or “concealment,” a usage dating from the 1400s.

Idioms and Phrases with take cover (2 of 2)

cover