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cloak

Apparel
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

An outer covering that hangs from the shoulders and fastens at the neck, providing warmth and concealment, often symbolizing mystery, protection, or disguise in verse.

Detailed Definition
The cloak is arguably the most dramatically charged outer garment in the poetic tradition, appearing in ballads, romances, and gothic poetry as a vehicle for transformation, secrecy, and sudden revelation. Its voluminous folds can hide a dagger, a letter, or a lover's face, making it indispensable for narratives of intrigue and elopement. In medieval chivalric poetry, the cloak is often bestowed as a mark of favor or stolen as a token of shame. The act of wrapping a cloak around another person signals a profound gesture of shelter or alliance. Moreover, the cloak's ability to be "cast aside" provides a ready image for throwing off sorrow, constraint, or old identity, while its heavy weight in rain or snow underscores the physical endurance of travelers and outcasts in landscape poetry.
Example
Example in poetry:
"Prefer my cloak unto the cloak of dust 'neath which the last year lies" (Ezra Pound, "The Cloak"); "The cloak Life made for her was gray in hue and shaped to hide her lissomness of line" (Anna Louise Barney); "Thou kens my cloak is very thin: It is so bare and over worn" ("The Old Cloak"); "My cloak it was a very good cloak, it hath been always true to the wear"; "I wonder which cloak you'll be wearing when you dance through my dreams tonight"; "I wear a cloak of laughter, how frail you are and thin!"
Additional Notes
The cloak is arguably the most dramatically charged outer garment in the poetic tradition, appearing in ballads, romances, and gothic poetry as a vehicle for transformation, secrecy, and sudden revelation. Its voluminous folds can hide a dagger, a letter, or a lover's face, making it indispensable for narratives of intrigue and elopement. In medieval chivalric poetry, the cloak is often bestowed as a mark of favor or stolen as a token of shame. The act of wrapping a cloak around another person signals a profound gesture of shelter or alliance. Moreover, the cloak's ability to be "cast aside" provides a ready image for throwing off sorrow, constraint, or old identity, while its heavy weight in rain or snow underscores the physical endurance of travelers and outcasts. Related terms include mantle, robe, cape, and pelisse. Students should note that the cloak often functions as an extension of the wearer's will, capable of both concealment and revelation, making it a natural vehicle for poems about identity and transformation.
Also Known As
mantle cape outer wrap shawe shrowd
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