Fig leaf Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun a leaf from a fig tree
  2. noun a covering consisting of anything intended to conceal something regarded as shameful

WordNet

Definitions
  1. the leaf tree; hence, in allusion to the first clothing of Adam and Eve (Genesis iii.7), a covering for a thing that ought to be concealed; esp., an inadequate covering; a symbol for affected modesty.

Webster 1913