See Also: shellac(medicine)
shellac(dictionary)
shellac(dictionary)
shellac base(medicine)

shellac (iou)



shellac noun & verb. M17.
[from SHELL noun + LAC noun1, translating French laque en ecailles lac in thin plates.]
A. noun.
Lac melted into thin plates and used for making varnish, later used esp. in the manufacture of gramophone records. M17.
attrib.: S. Eldred-Grigg Afternoon tea on a shellac tray.
A gramophone record made of shellac. M20.
b. verb trans. Orig. & chiefly N. Amer. Infl. -ck-.
Coat or varnish (as) with shellac. L19.
Beat, thrash soundly; defeat thoroughly. slang. M20.
R. Coover The Knicks shellacked Mel Trench's Cels, and hung on to their two-game lead.
shellacked ppl adjective (a) coated or varnished (as) with shellac; (b) US slang intoxicated: L19.