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shellacking

[ shuh-lak-ing ]
/ ʃəˈlæk ɪŋ /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR shellacking ON THESAURUS.COM

noun Slang.

an utter defeat: a shellacking their team will remember.
a sound thrashing: His father gave him a shellacking for stealing the book.

Words related to shellacking

strike, varnish, trounce, defeat

Words nearby shellacking

shell steak, shell suit, shell-like, shell-shocked, shellac, shellacking, shellback, shellbark, shellcracker, shelled, sheller

Origin of shellacking

First recorded in 1880–85; shellac + -ing1

Definition for shellacking (2 of 2)

shellac

or shel·lack

[ shuh-lak ]
/ ʃəˈlæk /

noun

lac that has been purified and formed into thin sheets, used for making varnish.
a varnish (shellac varnish) made by dissolving this material in alcohol or a similar solvent.
a phonograph record made of a breakable material containing shellac, especially one to be played at 78 r.p.m.: an LP that can hold nearly 10 times as much as the old shellac.

verb (used with object), shel·lacked, shel·lack·ing.

to coat or treat with shellac.
Slang.
  1. to defeat; trounce.
  2. to thrash soundly.

Origin of shellac

1705–15; shell + lac1, translation of French laque en écailles lac in thin plates
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Examples from the Web for shellacking

British Dictionary definitions for shellacking (1 of 2)

shellacking
/ (ʃəˈlækɪŋ, ˈʃɛlækɪŋ) /

noun

slang, mainly US and Canadian a complete defeat; a sound beatinganyone who gives a shellacking to their bigger neighbours

British Dictionary definitions for shellacking (2 of 2)

shellac
/ (ʃəˈlæk, ˈʃɛlæk) /

noun

a yellowish resin secreted by the lac insect, esp a commercial preparation of this used in varnishes, polishes, and leather dressings
Also called: shellac varnish a varnish made by dissolving shellac in ethanol or a similar solvent
a gramophone record based on shellac

verb -lacs, -lacking or -lacked (tr)

to coat or treat (an article) with a shellac varnish
US slang to defeat completely

Derived forms of shellac

shellacker, noun

Word Origin for shellac

C18: shell + lac 1, translation of French laque en écailles, literally: lac in scales, that is, in thin plates
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Idioms and Phrases with shellacking

shellacking

see take a shellacking.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.