closet homosexual/alcoholic etcSECRETsomeone who is a homosexual etc but who does not want to admit it 不愿公开承认的同性恋/酗酒者等
a closet communist
秘密的共产主义者
Examples from the Corpus
closet• He finally came out in 1998, after years as a closethomosexual.
closet3 verb [transitiveT]
ALONEto shut someone in a room away from other people in order to discuss something private, to be alone etc 把…引进密室会谈;把…关在小房间里
be closeted with somebody
All morning he’d been closeted with various officials.
整个上午他都在房间里和各种官员密谈。
closet yourself
Don’t let her closet herself away in her room.
别让她把自己关在房间里。
nGrammar
Closet is usually either passive or reflexive (=followed by myself/herself etc).
Examples from the Corpus
closet• Letterman closets himself with these women all day.• Tom spent most of his time closeted in his study, surrounded by his books.• Think of the many hours when the two of them are closeted in the den.• For an hour we were closeted with Colbert.• He was constantly closeted with the late King.
be closeted with somebody• For an hour we were closeted with Colbert.• He was also back to the dailypile of paperwork and would be closeted with secretaries for much of the day.
Origincloset1
(1300-1400)Old Frenchclos“enclosed place”, from Latinclausum, from clausus; → CLOSE2