词源 |
shellac n.also shell lac, "lac melted and formed into thin plates," 1713, from shell (n.) + lac; so called for its form. It translates French laque en écailles "lac in thin plates." Commercially, lac came as stick lac (still on the twigs, insects and all), seed-lac (resin without the twigs and insects, partly processed), and fully processed plates of shell lac. shellac v. 1876, "coat or varnish with shellac," from shellac (n.). The slang sense of "beat soundly" is by 1930 (implied in shellacked), perhaps from the notion of shellac as a "finish." Slang shellacked "drunk" is listed in "Dialect Notes" in 1922 (compare plastered under plaster (v.)). Related: Shellacking. updated on December 31, 2022 |