as in polishing
to cover (something) with varnish
He varnished the table.
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Recent Examples of varnishing
Like most ’80s metal heroes who briefly lost their way in the late ’90s, Megadeth have spent the 21st century varnishing their legacy with what’s tried and true, delivering eight LPs since 2001 that all basically sound the same.
—
Eli Enis, Pitchfork, 26 Jan. 2026
Eli Enis, Pitchfork, 26 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for varnishing
Verb
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One air bubble can destroy a $10,000 piece at the polishing stage.—
Lilian Raji,
Forbes.com,
30 Jan. 2026
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Advanced packaging – Disco Japan's Disco manufactures processing equipment and tools for the creation of computer chips, specializing in grinding and polishing equipment, which is part of the advanced packaging process.—
Tasmin Lockwood,
CNBC,
20 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Rothblatt said, sarcastically, as Fakroune sat at the defense table rubbing his temples.—
Jason Meisner,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Jan. 2026
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Combined with the swiveling dining table, the setup allows several digital nomads to comfortably clack away on their keyboards at the same time – no banging elbows or rubbing knees.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
24 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Hyaluronic acid, peptides, and botanical extracts provide pore-minimizing, firming, and line-smoothing properties.—
Tamim Alnuweiri,
InStyle,
31 Jan. 2026
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This is a great day to take note of potential friction points and start smoothing them over.—
Tarot.com,
Hartford Courant,
30 Jan. 2026
Verb
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This is done by coating both sides of the glass with a special type of film.—
Natalia Sánchez Loayza,
Scientific American,
29 Jan. 2026
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Had all of that fallen as freezing rain, the problems would have been far more severe, with thick layers of ice coating everything.—
Mary Wasson,
Austin American Statesman,
26 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Varnishing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/varnishing. Accessed 2 Feb. 2026.
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