to disguise / to clad
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to dress up
To change one's clothing and appearance so that one represents another person or character, often for fun at celebrations like Carnival or Halloween.
Die Kinder haben sich zu Karneval als Piraten verkleidet.
The children dressed up as pirates for Carnival.
The meaning of the verb changes with the grammar. 'Sich verkleiden' means to wear a costume and is reflexive. 'Etwas verkleiden' means to cover a surface and is transitive.
Er verkleidet sich jedes Jahr als Clown.
He dresses up as a clown every year.
'Verkleiden' is an inseparable verb. The prefix 'ver-' remains firmly attached to the stem 'kleiden' in all tenses and sentence constructions.
Sie hat sich für die Party toll verkleidet.
She dressed up really well for the party.
When you want to say what costume someone is wearing, you use the fixed structure 'sich verkleiden als' + noun in the nominative. Typical occasions are Carnival, Fasching, or Halloween.
Mein Sohn möchte sich dieses Jahr als Superheld verkleiden.
My son wants to dress up as a superhero this year.
When you clad or cover a surface, the material used is given with the preposition 'mit' (+ dative).
Wir haben die unschöne Mauer mit Efeu verkleidet.
We covered the ugly wall with ivy.
to cover
'bedecken' and 'verkleiden' can both mean that a surface is no longer openly visible. 'bedecken' is more general: you put something over it, for example a blanket, soil, or paper. 'verkleiden' is used when a wall, ceiling, or facade is covered with another material. This is often about protection or a nicer appearance. For a simple layer, 'bedecken' fits better; for construction or renovation work, 'verkleiden' sounds more natural.
Im Flur haben wir die alte Wand mit hellen Holzplatten verkleidet.
In the hallway, we clad the old wall with light-colored wooden panels.
Eine dünne Schneeschicht bedeckt am Morgen die ganze Straße.
In the morning, a thin layer of snow covers the whole street.