clos·et (klŏz'ĭt, klô'zĭt)
n.

1. A cabinet or enclosed recess for linens, household supplies, or clothing.
2. A small private chamber, as for study or prayer.
3. A water closet; a toilet.
4. A state of secrecy or cautious privacy: Two days before the election, the candidate suddenly came out of the closet and denounced the proposed law.

tr.v., -et·ed, -et·ing, -ets.
To enclose or shut up in a private room, as for discussion: closeted themselves with their attorneys.

adj.

1. Private; confidential: closet information.
2. Being so or engaging only in private; secret: a closet proponent of a tax increase; a closet alcoholic.
3. Based on theory and speculation rather than practice.

[Middle English, private room, from Old French, diminutive of clos, enclosure, from Latin clausum, from neuter of clausus, enclosed. See close.]

closetful clos'et·ful' n.

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

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