varnish

/ˈvɑrnɪʃ/

/ˈvɑnɪʃ/

Other forms: varnished; varnishes; varnishing

Varnish is a shiny coating that's painted on a floor or piece of furniture and then dries clear and luminous. After refinishing an old oak chair, you might apply a coat of varnish. (Just don't sit on it until it's dry.)

Varnish gives artwork, furniture, and other objects a finished, glossy look, and it also protects the surface. Most varnish is made from oil, solvent, and resin. You can also use the word as a verb, meaning "to coat with varnish." Many people decide to varnish their wood floors or their wooden kitchen counters. The Medieval Latin root word is vernix, "odorous or fragrant resin."

Definitions of varnish

1. noun

   a coating that provides a hard, lustrous, transparent finish to a surface
   types:

   fixative

   a varnish dissolved in alcohol and sprayed over pictures to prevent smudging

   shellac, shellac varnish

   a thin varnish made by dissolving lac in ethanol; used to finish wood

   French polish, French polish shellac

   a varnish for wood consisting of shellac dissolved in alcohol

   type of:

   coat, coating

   a thin layer covering something
2. verb

   cover with a hard, lustrous finish
   synonyms: seal

   types:

   shellac, shellack

   cover with shellac

   type of:

   coat, surface

   put a coat on; cover the surface of; furnish with a surface