Definition of "veil" []

• A length of cloth worn by women over the head, shoulders, and often the face. (noun)
• A length of netting attached to a woman's hat or habit, worn for decoration or to protect the head and face. (noun)
• The part of a nun's headdress that frames the face and falls over the shoulders. (noun)
• The life or vows of a nun. (noun)
• A piece of light fabric hung to separate or conceal what is behind it; a curtain. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "Instead of _vieux_, old, Joinville uses _veil_ or _veel_ (p. 132 C, _le veil le fil au veil_, _i. e._ _le vieux fils du vieux_); but in the nom. sing., _viex_, which is the Latin"
• ""The pope's visit has confirmed the veil is authentic.""
• "Until quite recently people had used veils when climbing on glaciers and snow, but in the rarified air, at high altitudes, the veil is almost suffocating, and one cannot wear it."