veneer

Intermediatezipf 3.13

Pronunciation

/vəˈnɪə/(vuh-NEER)

Part of speech

nounneutral

Chinese

① 薄板；贴面 ② 虚假的外表；伪装

Definition

(1) A thin decorative covering of fine wood. (2) An outward appearance that hides the true nature of something.

Word family

  • veneered/vəˈnɪəd/(adj)贴面的/表面的

Collocations

  • veneer of respectability
  • thin veneer
  • veneer of politeness
  • beneath the veneer

Examples

  1. 1.Beneath his veneer of confidence, he was deeply insecure. (false surface)
  2. 2.The table has a walnut veneer over a cheaper wood base. (thin covering)

Synonyms

  • facade/fəˈsɑːd/— false front
  • guise/ɡaɪz/— outward appearance
  • pretense/prɪˈtɛns/— false display

Etymology

from French "fournir" = to furnish — originally a thin layer applied to furniture to make it look better