shellac

A processed secretion of the lac insect, Coccus lacca; used in polishes, varnishes etc.

Noun

A processed secretion of the lac insect, Coccus lacca; used in polishes, varnishes etc.
- 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....
- 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...
A beating; a thrashing.

From shell + lac, calque of French laque en écailles (literally “lac in scales/shells”).

To coat with shellac.
To beat; to thrash.
To inflict a heavy defeat upon.
- In 1964 Goldwater ran rambunctiously, flat-out against government. He got shellacked. - 1987, George F. Will, The New Season: A Spectator's Guide to the 1988 Election, Simon and Schuster, page 21:
- In another the Mets were shellacked, 9-1, with a stray ninth-inning home run by Strawberry after two outs, preventing a shutout. - 1987, Tim McCarver, Ray Robinson, Oh, Baby, I Love It!, Villard Books, page 220: