Covert

How to spell covert

6 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce covert

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does covert mean?

1. adjectiveDone or kept secret, not openly acknowledged or displayed.

Covert in a sentence

• The agency ran a covert operation to gather intelligence.

• Managers sometimes use covert tactics to push staff out quietly.

Where does covert come from?

Language of origin: French

This word arrived in English in the 1300s from Old French covert, which was the past participle of the verb covrir, meaning 'to cover'. That French verb descended from the Latin cooperire, formed from the intensifying prefix co- and the verb operire, meaning 'to cover up' or 'to close over'. So at its root covert literally describes something that has been covered, and from there it shifted naturally to the modern sense of 'hidden' or 'secret'. The everyday word 'cover' shares exactly the same Latin parentage, which is a useful memory hook: a covert action is one kept under cover. Its direct opposite, 'overt', comes from the related Latin aperire, 'to open', and the pairing of covert and overt mirrors the old French covert and overt almost perfectly.

How the word is built

• co- (intensive, from Latin com-)
• vert (from Latin operire: to cover); literally 'covered', the past participle form