mask

Definitions

• A cover, or partial cover, for the face, used for disguise or protection.
• That which disguises; a pretext or subterfuge.
• A festive entertainment of dancing or other diversions, where all wear masks; a masquerade
• A person wearing a mask.
• (obsolete) A dramatic performance, formerly in vogue, in which the actors wore masks and represented mythical or allegorical characters.
• (architecture) A grotesque head or face, used to adorn keystones and other prominent parts, to spout water in fountains, and the like
• (fortification) In a permanent fortification, a redoubt which protects the caponiere.
• (fortification) A screen for a battery
• (zoology) The lower lip of the larva of a dragonfly, modified so as to form a prehensile organ.
• (Puebloan) A ceremonial object used in Puebloan kachina cults that resembles a Euro-American mask. (The term is objected to as an appropriate translation by Puebloan peoples as it emphasizes imitation but ignores power and representational intent.)
• (computing) A pattern of bits used in bitwise operations; bitmask.
• (computer graphics) A two-color (black and white) bitmap generated from an image, used to create transparency in the image.
• (heraldiccharge) The head of a fox, shown face-on and cut off immediately behind the ears.