noun
-
a layer or film spread over a surface for protection or decoration
-
a heavy fabric suitable for coats
-
dialect a severe rebuke; ticking-off
Etymology
Origin of coating
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
When cooked, it forms a lightly tangy, almost caramelized coating that makes it seem like you put in more effort than you did.
From Salon • Apr. 28, 2026
The myelin sheath is a protective coating that surrounds nerve fibers in the brain and spinal cord.
From Science Daily • Apr. 15, 2026
After the first uncrewed test flight, Artemis I, engineers found that chunks of the heat shield's coating had cracked and broken away during a two‑stage "skip" re‑entry manoeuvre.
From BBC • Mar. 31, 2026
“She had difficulties already in her life, and there’s no sugar coating that. So we had to navigate this argument that what social-media addiction does is it preys upon the vulnerable more times than not.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 28, 2026
The old fear began to pump, coating my insides with heat.
From "Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children" by Ransom Riggs
![]()
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.