English Reference
adjective · noun

hidden

adj. · n.
US /ˈhɪdən/ UK /hˈɪdən/ hid·den

  1. 01 A2 Elementary

    adj.kept out of sight so that people cannot see or find it.

    adj.positioned or kept out of sight; concealed from view.

    Simple

    The children found a hidden door behind the old bookshelf.

    In context

    The valley remained hidden from the main road by a dense screen of ancient pine trees, preserving its quiet atmosphere.

  2. 02 B2 Upper Intermediate

    adj.not easy to notice or understand; having a secret meaning.

    adj.obscure or not easily perceived by the intellect; containing a deeper or non-obvious meaning.

    Simple

    The movie has a hidden message about protecting the environment.

    In context

    The contract contained several hidden costs that the small business owner failed to notice during the initial negotiations.

  3. 03 C2 Proficiency Technical

    n.a type of puzzle clue where the answer is written inside other words.

    n.a cryptic crossword clue where the solution is found consecutively within the letters of the clue's wordplay.

    Simple

    I finally solved the hidden in the third row of the crossword.

    In context

    The setter used a clever hidden, concealing the eight-letter answer across three separate words in the middle of the sentence.

Usage hidden costs · hidden inside

A hidden population of one of England's rarest moths has been found at a site where it had not been seen for more than 70 years.

BBC News· 14 Aug 2026

And then, the Moon began to reveal the Sun that it had hidden.

BBC News· 12 Aug 2026

Morphologically hid + -en.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This entry
Level B2 · Upper Intermediate
Frequency Common
Updated