Hello

Could someone tell me whether there are occasions in which conceal and hide cannot be interchanged?

Thanks a lot

I don't think so, Majid, at least not off the top of my head. Conceal just has somewhat of a more formal sound to it than hide.

This is once again an example of when a Latinate word (conceal) sound more formal than an Anglo-Saxon word (hide)with the same basic meaning.

Dear Richard,

I have copied what is pasted below in case it would be of any help.


Hide/ BrE ; AmE / hid , hidden [ T ]
to put or keep sb/sth in a place where they/it cannot be seen or found; to keep sth secret, especially your feelings He hid the letter in a drawer. ◇ I keep my private papers hidden. ◇ They hid me from the police in their attic. ◇ She struggled to hide her disappointment. ◇ They claim that they have nothing to hide ( = there was nothing wrong or illegal about what they did ) . ◇ His brusque manner hides a shy and sensitive nature.
I could not hide my joy at seeing him again. ◇ I have never tried to hide the truth about my past.


Conceal/ BrE ; AmE / [ T ] ( formal )
to hide sb/sth; to keep sth secret The paintings were concealed beneath a thick layer of plaster. ◇ For a long time his death was concealed from her. ◇ She sat down to conceal the fact that she was trembling.
When it is being used to talk about emotions, conceal is often used in negative statements: He could not conceal his joy/disappointment. ◇ She could barely/scarcely/hardly conceal her delight.
Tim could barely conceal his disappointment.


From the Oxford Learner’s Thesaurus © Oxford University Press, 2008.

--------
synonyms HIDE, BURY, SECRETE, CACHE, SCREEN, ENSCONCE: CONCEAL and HIDE are general terms often interchangeable.

CONCEAL may be applied freely to persons and animals, objects, attributes, conditions, facts, or ideas <Sophia had held the telegram concealed in her hand and its information concealed in her heart -- Arnold Bennett> <Elizabeth was forced to conceal her lover from her father -- Virginia Woolf> <politeness may conceal a legitimate wish that dare not put itself in bald speech -- R.P.Blackmur> CONCEAL may indicate any hiding or masking of any motive, from reprehensible secrecy to aesthetic improvement <conceal a murder> <conceal a scar> <concealing a scratch on a piece of furniture> <conceal a bad odor> It need not suggest covering. It often implies a certain design or artfulness.

HIDE may differ from CONCEAL in suggesting less conscious intent and artfulness, and hence less effectiveness, but occasionally more urgency <hidden things that had never been concealed, that had merely been dropped away into forgotten corners and out-of-the-way places -- Elizabeth M. Roberts> <with these consoling words he tried to hide from her the doubt that had entered his mind -- Morley Callaghan> It is less applicable than CONCEAL to senses other than sight.

Webster's Third New International Dictionary, Unabridged.
--------

Here's another difference: 'hide' can be intransitive, but 'conceal' can't.

Here's an entry from the LDOCE at 'hide':

[intransitive] to go or stay in a place where no one will see or find you:
Quick, he's coming! We'd better hide.

hide in/under/behind etc
Harry hid under the bed.

hide from somebody
Weiss spent two years hiding from the Nazis.

Thank you every body for your great help.