pull back the curtain

verb

To reveal an underlying truth.

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Meanings

verbpull back the curtain (third-person singular simple present pulls back the curtain, present participle pulling back the curtain, simple past and past participle pulled back the curtain)

present singular third person pulls back the curtain · participle present pulling back the curtain · participle past pulled back the curtain · past pulled back the curtain

  1. idiomaticTo reveal an underlying truth.

    Understanding how we can be manipulated helps us pull back the curtain on charlatans and can even protect democracy.

    2020 December 17, Nathan J. Robinson, “The Sophist and The Magician”, in Current Affairs, archived from the original on 10 Oct 2024
Cite this entry
APA

pull back the curtain. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pull%20back%20the%20curtain

MLA

“pull back the curtain.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pull%20back%20the%20curtain. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “pull back the curtain,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pull%20back%20the%20curtain.

Source: pull back the curtain on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.