shellac

noun

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shel·lac | \ shə-ˈlak

Definition of shellac

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : purified lac usually prepared in thin orange or yellow flakes by heating and filtering and often bleached white

2 : a preparation of lac dissolved usually in alcohol and used chiefly as a wood filler and finish

3a : a composition containing shellac formerly used for making phonograph records

b : an old 78 rpm phonograph record

shellac

verb

shellacked; shellacking

Definition of shellac (Entry 2 of 2)

transitive verb

1 : to coat or otherwise treat with shellac or a shellac varnish

2 : to defeat decisively

Synonyms Example Sentences Learn More about shellac

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Examples of shellac in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun Denatured alcohol can be used to strip floors and make shellac, but don’t put it in your homemade hand sanitizer to fight the COVID-19 coronavirus. — Cliff Pinckard, cleveland, "Cuyahoga County Jail stops in-person visits: The Wake Up for Friday, March 6, 2020," 6 Mar. 2020 The Brach’s classic candy corn ingredients were listed as sugar, corn syrup, confectioner’s glaze (shellac), salt, dextrose, gelatin, sesame oil, artificial flavor, honey, Yellow 6, Yellow 5, Red 3. — Courtland Milloy, Washington Post, "Halloween stirs childhood memories of sweet treats. But adulthood means putting that sweet tooth in check.," 29 Oct. 2019 At the turn of the century, the ever-expanding electrical industry was running low on shellac, a resin secreted by the female lac bug which could be used as an insulating material. — Alice Bell, CNN, "Can science break its plastic addiction?," 5 Nov. 2019 Shifts in format — from wax cylinders to shellac discs to LPs to CDs and MP3s and now streaming — arrive periodically to transform the record trade. — New York Times, "The Day the Music Burned," 11 June 2019 Methanol is a type of alcohol that's often used as an ingredient in antifreeze, paint thinner, shellac, and windshield wiper fluid, according to MedlinePlus. — Cory Stieg, refinery29.com, "Could Bootleg Alcohol Explain The Dominican Republic Deaths?," 18 June 2019 The site became industrialized with the Lacy Foundry and industries that made shellac and paint. — Jacques Kelly, baltimoresun.com, "Baltimore's Harbor Point becomes a Cinderella story for an industrial site people once avoided," 15 June 2019 This contained inorganic pigments in an organic binding medium overlaid by a shellac varnish. — The Economist, "Researchers find a way to use minute samples to detect forged paintings," 8 June 2019 Softer brushes, like this one, are better for stains and clear finishes, like varnish, spar varnish, shellac, and brushing lacquers. — Roy Berendsohn, Popular Mechanics, "The 4 Biggest Painting Mistakes (And How to Avoid Them)," 16 Jan. 2019 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb There are also nagging economic questions, including Texans getting shellacked by outrageous property tax bills amid a pandemic that’s left millions of residents out of work and struggling to feed their families. — Dallas News, "Where do we go from here? 3 COVID-19 topics your elected leaders should tackle," 25 May 2020 Indeed, on a day the market was shellacked, Zoom Video Communications was off just a smidge, and Chinese delivery giant Meituan eked out a gain. — Adam Lashinsky, Fortune, "The online travel market is the perfect financial petri dish for the coronavirus crisis," 10 Mar. 2020 The news media industry continues to be shellacked by the dismal advertising market as businesses remain shuttered throughout much of the country. — New York Times, "Stocks Rally After Talk of Reopening Economy: Live Updates," 18 Apr. 2020 The Paris mayor's race has been downright nasty, and President Emmanuel Macron's centrist party reportedly is due to get shellacked. — Michelle Krupa, CNN, "Start your Monday smart: Coronavirus, 2020 Dems, Bolton, Planned Parenthood, St. Pat," 15 Mar. 2020 The hairstyle, known for its round shape, with hair swept off the face and shellacked into place with quite a bit of hair spray, is symbolic of all that is retro. — Marisa Meltzer, New York Times, "Why We Love the Bouffant," 17 Mar. 2020 So what if most mushes fell victim to the tongue-thrust reflex or ended up repurposed as art supplies, my walls decorated with beet-purple spatter and shellacked with heirloom bean? — Washington Post, "Perspective | As a cookbook writer, I just knew my children would be good eaters. Then they were born.," 24 Jan. 2020 Stocks snapped back from last week’s shellacking on expectations for a global policy response if the world economy is constricted by the effects of the coronavirus. — Hiroko Masuike, New York Times, "Seattle, Coronavirus, Amy Klobuchar: Your Monday Evening Briefing," 2 Mar. 2020 If Sanders were to get shellacked, however, recriminations would be instant and intense. — Michael Tomasky, The New York Review of Books, "The Party Cannot Hold," 27 Feb. 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'shellac.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.