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From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:
Varnish \Var"nish\, verb (used with an object) [imp. & p. p. {Varnished}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Varnishing}.] [Cf. F. vernir, vernisser. See {Varnish}, noun]
1. To lay varnish on; to cover with a liquid which produces, when dry, a hard, glossy surface; as, to varnish a table; to varnish a painting.
2. To cover or conceal with something that gives a fair appearance; to give a fair coloring to by words; to gloss over; to palliate; as, to varnish guilt. ''Beauty doth varnish age.'' --Shak.
Close ambition, varnished o'er with zeal. --Milton.
Cato's voice was ne'er employed To clear the guilty and to varnish crimes. --Addison.
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:
Varnish \Var"nish\, noun [OE. vernish, F. vernis, LL. vernicium; akin to F. vernir to varnish, fr. (assumed) LL. vitrinire to glaze, from LL. vitrinus glassy, fr. L. vitrum glass. See {Vitreous}.]
1. A viscid liquid, consisting of a solution of resinous matter in an oil or a volatile liquid, laid on work with a brush, or otherwise. When applied the varnish soon dries, either by evaporation or chemical action, and the resinous part forms thus a smooth, hard surface, with a beautiful gloss, capable of resisting, to a greater or less degree, the influences of air and moisture.
Note: According to the sorts of solvents employed, the ordinary kinds of varnish are divided into three classes: spirit, turpentine, and oil varnishes. --Encyc. Brit
2. That which resembles varnish, either naturally or artificially; a glossy appearance.
The varnish of the holly and ivy. --Macaulay.
3. An artificial covering to give a fair appearance to any act or conduct; outside show; gloss.
And set a double varnish on the fame The Frenchman gave you. --Shak.
{Varnish tree} (Bot.), a tree or shrub from the juice or resin of which varnish is made, as some species of the genus {Rhus}, especially {Rhus vernicifera} of Japan. The black varnish of Burmah is obtained from the {Melanorrh[oe]a usitatissima}, a tall East Indian tree of the Cashew family. See {Copal}, and {Mastic}.
From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:
varnish
noun: paint that provides a hard glossy transparent coating
verb: cover with varnish [syn: {seal}]
From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:
277 Moby Thesaurus words for "varnish": acting, adorn, affectation, air brush, alibi, allow for, allowance, apology, appearance, apply paint, art paper, attitudinizing, becloud, bedaub, bedizen, befog, begild, belie, besmear, bias, blanket, blind, bluff, bluffing, brush, brush on paint, buff, burnish, calcimine, camera lucida, camera obscura, camouflage, canvas, chalk, charcoal, cheating, cloak, cloud, coat, coating, color, coloring, complexion, conceal, convolute, cover, cover story, cover up, cover-up, crayon, curtain, dab, daub, deception, decontamination, decorate, deep-dye, delusion, device, diminish, dip, disguise, dissemblance, dissemble, dissembling, dissimulation, distemper, distort, distract attention from, double-dye, drawing paper, drawing pencil, dress up, drier, dye, ease, easel, eclipse, elaborate, embellish, emblazon, embroider, enamel, engild, enrich, ensconce, enshroud, envelop, excuse, extenuate, extenuating circumstances, extenuation, extenuative, facade, face, facing, fakery, faking, false air, false front, false show, falsify, falsity, fast-dye, feigning, feint, festoon, film, finish, fixative, flourish, four-flushing, fraud, fresco, front, fudge, fur, furbish, garble, gild, gilding, gilt, glance, glaze, gloss, gloss over, grain, ground, guise, handle, hide, hue, humbug, humbuggery, ignore, illuminate, imbue, imposture, ingrain, involve, japan, keep under cover, lacquer, lame excuse, lay figure, lay on color, lessen, load with ornament, locus standi, luster, make allowance for, mask, masquerade, maulstick, medium, meretriciousness, mince, miscite, miscolor, misconstrue, misdirect, misinterpret, misquote, misrender, misreport, misrepresent, misstate, misuse, mitigate, mitigation, obfuscate, obscure, occult, ornament, ostensible motive, ostentation, outward show, overcharge, overlay, overload, overstate, paint, paintbrush, palette, palette knife, palliate, palliation, palliative, parget, pastel, pellicle, pencil, pervert, pigment, pigments, playacting, polish, poor excuse, pose, posing, posture, pretense, pretension, pretext, prime, protestation, public motive, put-off, qualification, refuge, representation, revetment, rub, scale, scour, scratchboard, screen, scum, seeming, semblance, shade, shadow, sham, shellac, shine, show, shroud, siccative, simulacrum, simulation, sketchbook, sketchpad, skin, slant, sleek, slick, slick down, slop on paint, slur over, smear, smoke screen, soft-pedal, soften, softening, spatula, speciousness, spray gun, stain, stalking-horse, stipple, strain, stratagem, stump, subterfuge, sugarcoat, tinct, tincture, tinge, tint, titivate, tone, torture, trick, trick out, twist, undercoat, understate, veil, veneer, warp, wash, wax, white, whiten, whitewash, whitewashing, window dressing
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