shellac en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- /ˈʃɛlæk/
- /ʃəˈlæk/
- (Southern-England) audio
- /ʃɛˈlæk/
Etymology
From shell + lac, calque of French laque en écailles (literally “lac in scales/shells”).
Meanings
-
(countable, uncountable) A processed secretion of the lac insect, Coccus lacca; used in polishes, varnishes etc.
At the turn of the century, the ever-expanding electrical industry was running low on shellac, a resin secreted by the female lac bug which could be used as an insulating material.
2019 November 5, Alice Bell, “Can science break its plastic addiction?”, in CNN:But, she says, a wartime ban on recordings using shellac and vinyl kept the Walker version from being released.
2002 April 29, Norman Pearlstine, “A Month Of Mondays If that doesn't give you the blues, nothing will. Norman Pearlstine ranks his favorite versions of the classic "Stormy Monday Blues"--one for every doggone working day of the month.”, in CNN Money, archived from the original on 08 Feb 2022:
- (US, countable, informal, uncountable) A beating; a thrashing.
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| shellacs | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Deriveds
Synonyms
E904 when used as a glazing agent
Translations (29)
ja シェラック (processed secretion of the lac insect) · cmn 紫膠 /紫胶 (processed secretion of the lac insect) · eo ŝelako (processed secretion of the lac insect) · ca goma laca (processed secretion of the lac insect) · el σελάκη (processed secretion of the lac insect) · cmn 虫胶 (processed secretion of the lac insect) · es goma laca (processed secretion of the lac insect) · fr gomme-laque (processed secretion of the lac insect) · ota غومالاق (processed secretion of the lac insect) · sv schellack (processed secretion of the lac insect) · pt goma-laca (processed secretion of the lac insect) · hu sellak (processed secretion of the lac insect) · pl gumilaka (processed secretion of the lac insect) · ru шелла́к (processed secretion of the lac insect) · de Schellack (processed secretion of the lac insect) · ru гуммила́к (processed secretion of the lac insect) · fi sellakka (processed secretion of the lac insect) · pl szelak (processed secretion of the lac insect) · el γομαλάκα (processed secretion of the lac insect) · hy դոճախեժ (processed secretion of the lac insect) · hy շելլակ (processed secretion of the lac insect) · nl schellak (processed secretion of the lac insect) · tr şellak (processed secretion of the lac insect) · bg шеллак (processed secretion of the lac insect) · ota غومالاقه (processed secretion of the lac insect) · it gommalacca (processed secretion of the lac insect) · hi चपड़ा (processed secretion of the lac insect) · id sirlak (processed secretion of the lac insect) · ro șelac (processed secretion of the lac insect)