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veneer

 [vuh-neer]   Origin

ve·neer

   [vuh-neer]
noun
1.
a thin layer of wood or other material for facing or inlaying wood.
2.
any of the thin layers of wood glued together to form plywood.
3.
Building Trades. a facing of a certain material applied to a different one or to a type of construction not ordinarily associated with it, as a facing of brick applied to a frame house.
4.
a superficially valuable or pleasing appearance: a cruel person with a veneer of kindliness.
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verb (used with object)
5.
to overlay or face (wood) with thin sheets of some material, as a fine wood, ivory, or tortoise shell.
6.
to face or cover (an object) with any material that is more desirable as a surface material than the basic material of the object; revet.
7.
to cement (layers of wood veneer) to form plywood.
8.
to give a superficially valuable or pleasing appearance to.

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Veneer is one of our favorite verbs.
So is bowdlerise. Does it mean:
to swindle, cheat, hoodwink, or hoax.
to expurgate (a written work) by removing or modifying passages considered vulgar or objectionable.
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Origin:
1695–1705; earlier fineering, faneering < German Fourni(e)rung, Furni(e)rung, equivalent to furni(e)ren to furnish (< French fournir) + -ung -ing1

Related forms
ve·neer·er, noun
un·ve·neered, adjective

Synonyms
4. façade, front, show, mask, guise.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Collins
World English Dictionary
veneer (vɪˈnɪə)
 
—n
1.  a thin layer of wood, plastic, etc, with a decorative or fine finish that is bonded to the surface of a less expensive material, usually wood
2.  a superficial appearance, esp one that is pleasing: a veneer of gentility
3.  any facing material that is applied to a different backing material
4.  any one of the layers of wood that is used to form plywood
 
—vb
5.  to cover (a surface) with a veneer
6.  to bond together (thin layers of wood) to make plywood
7.  to conceal (something) under a superficially pleasant surface
 
[C17: from German furnieren to veneer, from Old French fournir to furnish]
 
ve'neerer
 
—n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

veneer
1702, from Ger. Furnier, from furnieren "to cover with a veneer, inlay," from Fr. fournir "to furnish, accomplish," from M.Fr. fornir "to furnish," from a Gmc. source (cf. O.H.G. frumjan "to provide;" see furnish). A word batted back and forth from German to French to German.
EXPAND
Fig. sense of "mere outward show of some good quality" is attested from 1868. The verb is recorded from 1728.
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Medical Dictionary

veneer ve·neer (və-nēr')
n.
A layer of tooth-colored material, usually porcelain or acrylic resin, attached to and covering the surface of a metal crown or natural tooth structure.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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