1
2
3
as in cupboard
a storage case typically having doors and shelves
a china closet in the Hepplewhite style
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in to house
to close or shut in by or as if by barriers
he closeted himself in his study, vowing not to emerge until he had finished the term paper
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in clandestine
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of closet
Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, 8 Nov. 2025
Perry’s films can lurch from romance to madcap Madea comedy to skeletons-in-the-closet family drama and back…all in the space of 20 minutes.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 7 Nov. 2025
Inkoo Kang, New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2025
Or perhaps the speaker could recognize that a cousin at the table may be closeted, and take it upon themselves to model how to push back against transphobia.
—Lee Bebout, The Conversation, 16 Sep. 2025
Averi Baudler, Peoplemag, 2 Mar. 2024
By calling Hobbes the only liberal worth reading, Gray implies that liberals are really closet totalitarians—and know it.
—Helena Rosenblatt, Foreign Affairs, 20 Feb. 2024
See All Example Sentences for closet
Noun
The experience of being bombarded with shoe-closet-makeover reels and deep-plane-facelift infomercials from Miami plastic surgeons is as normal there as breathing.
—Verb
Dale, who was closeted at the time of his death, leaves behind notes stashed inside his treasured first-edition books hinting that his wife (Jeanne Tripplehorn) may have had something to do with his ostensible suicide.
—Adjective
Whether paired with heels, sneakers, or both (like Gaines), wide-leg jeans are the closet staple your wardrobe may be missing this spring.
—Recent Examples of Synonyms for closet
Noun
-
Use it to keep meat, seafood, fruits, vegetables, snacks, and more fresh in the fridge or pantry.—
-
Then last week, pantry director Jesse Sharrard got a call from the food bank that a truckload was on the way.—
Noun
-
Another photo shows an elegant black piano in a room with floor-to-ceiling windows draped in linen curtains, with sage green and white armchairs and a cork coffee table with books and a vase of hydrangeas in view.—
-
Layer Different Materials Arguably, the best way to make a room feel warmer through design is to layer various materials.—
Noun
-
People typically work two, three or more jobs just to survive, and still cupboards and refrigerators are nearly bare.—
-
People typically work two, three or more jobs just to survive, and still cupboards and refrigerators are nearly bare.—
Verb
-
All those years of speeches are housed in one place, across the street from the Capitol, in the State Library and court building.—
-
When manual driving is selected, the airbag housed within the steering wheel is used instead.—
Adjective
-
The show’s original pair of fathers, who secretly orchestrate the clandestine love affair between their children, are now mothers.—
-
Saimar Rivas, Armas’s partner and a longtime civil-rights activist, told me that he had been taken to a clandestine site run by the SEBIN, Venezuela’s intelligence agency.—
Noun
-
The best part about china cabinets, though?—
-
If one of your resolutions is to cut down on clutter, grab this shoe storage cabinet that holds up to 16 pairs and seamlessly blends in with your other pieces.—
Adjective
-
Danish media reported that at least three people with connections to Trump carried out covert influence operations in Greenland.—
-
Federal statute mandates the president inform a bipartisan group of eight, high-ranking members of Congress prior to particularly covert operations.—
Noun
-
Kendricks spoke Wednesday at his locker directly across from Fred Warner, the four-time All-Pro who sustained a right-ankle fracture three months ago and is working toward an improbable comeback should the 49ers reach the NFC Championship round.—
-
Some Georgia districts are already using locking pouches, but schools could also just tell students to leave their phone in their locker, to turn them in to a teacher, or disable them using an online application.—
Cite this Entry
“Closet.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/closet. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share