cover-up

• coverup

From the verb cover up.

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cover-up (plural cover-ups)

1. An attempt to conceal or disguise something, especially a wrongdoing or a mistake.
   • 1991 February 4, Michael Bronski, “Are We Having A War, Or What?”, in Gay Community News, volume 18, number 28, page 9:

     [War metaphors] are used, either consciously or unconsciously, for specific effect and purpose. They are used, not so much as descriptions, but rather to convey additional moral, imaginative or judgmental information. The ubiquitous "war between the sexes" is, in fact, a cover-up of the fact that men, generally, have social power over women.

   • 1999, Mona the Vampire, "Jurassic Parking Lot" (season 1, episode 3b):

     Mona: Oh, of course, a cover-up! You know, the whole town would panic if they knew a misunderstood Frankensteinosaurus was on a bloodthirsty rampage! Your secret's safe, Officer. I don't want to cause an international panic any more than you do.

   • 2000 June 17, Elizabeth A. Johnson, “Mary of Nazareth: Friend of God and Prophet”, in America‎, volume 182, number 21:

     These divine qualities migrated to Mary because of deficiencies in the theology of God, in Christology and in pneumatology. It makes no lasting sense to retain this as a permanent status quo, using Mary as a cover-up for defective notions of the divine.

   Truthfulness means no lies and no cover-ups. Compassion means being kind and helpful to others. Forbearance means being able to tolerate and suffer, and not fight back.

2. An item of clothing to be worn over a swimsuit while not in the water.
   • 2013, Velvet Carter, Blissfully Yours, page 93:

     The women usually wore bikini tops with shorts, swimsuits underneath cover-ups or just swimsuits. Men came in various types of trunks, from traditional boxers, to Speedos, to G-string trunks that showcased their packages.

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