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Glite Dictionary
to wear a disguise

to wear a disguise

5 3.9
To put on clothes or a mask to hide who you are
  • phrasal verb
  • /wɛr ə dɪsˈɡaɪz/
translation icon : disfrazarse
  • To avoid being recognized, she chose to wear a disguise while attending the event.

Examples

Synonyms

to impersonate
vsto wear a disguise
70 7.2

Pretend to be another person by copying their looks, voice or actions

focuses on changing clothes to hide identity rather than copying voice or behaviour
to dress as
vsto wear a disguise
61 3.5

Put on a costume to look like someone or something else

uses similar clothing to hide real identity rather than changing clothes for events
to masquerade
vsto wear a disguise
26 6.9

To pretend to be someone else to hide the truth

uses clothing or costume to hide real identity rather than acting
to personate
vsto wear a disguise
1 9.9

Pretend to be another person to trick people or act in a role

relies on clothing or costume to conceal identity rather than performing a role
under false colors
vsto wear a disguise
  • US
1 9.1

Pretending to be someone else to trick people

involves physical clothing to hide identity rather than just pretending or hiding plans
to sail under false colors
vsto wear a disguise
  • Informal
8.4

To pretend to be someone else to trick people

uses clothing or costume to hide identity rather than strategy to gain advantage

Antonyms

to reveal
∞ 2.3

Show something that was hidden or secret

to unmask
23 4.2

Show what someone or something really is

How Hidden

to mask
111 3.7
to wear a disguise
5 3.9
to dress up
178 2.7

Surface Forms

wear a disguise infinitive
wearing a disguise present participle
wears a disguise third person singular
wore a disguise past
worn a disguise past participle

Morphology

wear + a + disguise

The meaning is directly compositional: 'wear' (to have clothing on) plus 'disguise' (clothing or an act used to hide identity) yields 'to put on clothing/costume to conceal one's identity.' This is a straightforward verb + noun construction common across languages, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words will readily understand it.

Etymology

The phrase wear a disguise shows a simple picture: you wear a mask or different clothes as a disguise so other people do not know who you are. So it means 'to hide who you really are'.