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to shellack

to shellack

1 8.7
To cover wood or furniture with a thin shiny finish for protection
  • verb
  • /ʃəˈlæk/
  • Specialized
translation icon : barnizar
  • On more than one occasion, Wailes sent him in search of turtles, snakes, and fossils, which Gabriel pickled in whiskey or cleaned and shellacked in preparation for display.

Examples

  • All the tables and all the chairs were carved out of trees and shellacked so that they still looked like trees, only shinier and in the shape of chairs.

    Fiction book (1999)
  • Republicans did not get "shellacked."

    Blog text (20)
  • In summer, they gathered frogs in a pail, left them in the sun, and shellacked their dried bodies in the basement.

    Fiction book (2002)
  • Overdressed women shellacked in make-up, old folks taking their constitutional exercise here where it was relatively sheltered and safe, and packs of mall-rats burnishing their attitudes.

    Fiction book (2002)
  • He decided to shellack the wooden table to protect it from moisture.

  • After sanding the surface, she shellacked the cabinet to give it a glossy finish.

  • To preserve the artwork, the artist chose to shellack the canvas for a shiny appearance.

Synonyms

to coat
vsto shellack
105 2.8

To cover something with a thin layer of a substance

specifies using a resin for a shiny finish rather than any layer
to tar
vsto shellack
19 4.3

To cover something with a thick sticky substance to make it waterproof

focuses on using a resin for a glossy protective finish rather than waterproofing
to shellac
vsto shellack
  • Specialized
1 7.8

Cover something with a shiny protective finish made from a natural hard substance

means the same but is spelled with a final k

Antonyms

to strip
  • Specialized
15 6.3

Remove a substance or part from material like soil

How Coated

to varnish
5 4.2
to shellack
  • Specialized
1 8.7
to coat
105 2.8
to brush
242 1.0
to dab
11 2.8

Surface Forms

shellack infinitive
shellacked past
shellacked past participle
shellacking present participle
shellacks third person singular

Etymology

Shellack comes from the resin called lac that came from India, and lac means 'resin' and makes a shiny, protective finish like a lacquer. So to shellack something is to 'coat' it with that glossy, protective layer.