What does "varnish" mean?
Varnish: An artificial covering to give a fair appearance to any act or conduct; outside show; gloss. And set a double varnish on the fame The Frenchman gave you. Shak. Varnish tree (Bot.), a tree or shrub from the juice or resin of which varnish is made, as some species of the genus Rhus, especially R. vernicifera of Japan. The black varnish of Burmah is obtained from the Melanorrhoea usitatissima, a tall East Indian tree of the Cashew family. See Copal, and Mastic.
Additional senses
- 2.To lay varnish on; to cover with a liquid which produces, when dry, a hard, glossy surface; as, to varnish a table; to varnish a painting.
- 3.To cover or conceal with something that gives a fair appearance; to give a fair coloring to by words; to gloss over; to palliate; as, to varnish guilt. "Beauty doth varnish age." Shak. Close ambition, varnished o'er with zeal. Milton. Cato's voice was ne'er employed To clear the guilty and to varnish crimes. Addison.
Sources
- Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).
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- Published: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00 · Modified: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00