smoke screen

Noun

Meaning

an action intended to conceal or confuse or obscure

(military) screen consisting of a cloud of smoke that obscures movements

Source: WordNet

Alternative names

smoke-screen

Synonyms

domino mummery cover-up tarpaulin red herring smokescreen fumigant fig leaf stalking-horse roll on tegument fumigator deodorizer vizard false face

Show all synonyms

Antonyms

annunciation gospel fidelity fact axiom enlightenment

Show all antonyms

Hypernyms

screen hiding concealment concealing

Examples

The Wright brothers flew right through the smoke screen of impossibility. Charles Kettering

The Wright brothers flew through the smoke screen of impossibility. Dorothea Brande

Bob Holmes, the script editor, did laugh and filled his pipe so that he could create a smoke screen between us while he turned the idea down. Tom Baker

Forget the chicken-nugget smoke screen. Percy wanted Leo to invent an anti-dream hat. Rick Riordan

In art, scandal is a false narrative, a smoke screen that camouflages rather than reveals. When we don't know what we're seeing, we overreact. Jerry Saltz

Behind a smoke screen of high-profile female appointees and soothing slogans, George W. Bush is waging war on women. Molly Ivins

Close letter words and terms

smoke ring smoke room smoke sail smoke sensor smoke show smoke signal