veneer vs wash

veneer

noun
  • A thin decorative covering of fine material (usually wood) applied to coarser wood or other material. 

  • An attractive appearance that covers or disguises one's true nature or feelings. 

verb
  • To apply veneer to. 

  • To disguise with apparent goodness. 

wash

noun
  • A thin coat of paint or metal laid on anything for beauty or preservation. 

  • The upper surface of a member or material when given a slope to shed water; hence, a structure or receptacle shaped so as to receive and carry off water. 

  • A lighting fixture that can cast a wide beam of light to evenly fill an area with light, as opposed to a spotlight. 

  • The process or an instance of washing or being washed by water or other liquid. 

  • The backward current or disturbed water caused by the action of oars, or of a steamer's screw or paddles, etc. 

  • A liquid used for washing. 

  • A shallow body of water. 

  • In distilling, the fermented wort before the spirit is extracted. 

  • A lotion or other liquid with medicinal or hygienic properties. 

  • A fictitious kind of sale of stock or other securities between parties of one interest, or by a broker who is both buyer and seller, and who minds his own interest rather than that of his clients. 

  • The blade of an oar. 

  • A piece of ground washed by the action of water, or sometimes covered and sometimes left dry; the shallowest part of a river, or arm of the sea; also, a bog; a marsh. 

  • A mixture of dunder, molasses, water, and scummings, used in the West Indies for distillation. 

  • A smooth and translucent painting created using a paintbrush holding a large amount of solvent and a small amount of paint. 

  • Ground washed away to the sea or a river. 

  • The turbulence left in the air by a moving airplane. 

  • Waste liquid, the refuse of food, the collection from washed dishes, etc., from a kitchen, often used as food for pigs; pigwash. 

  • The quantity of clothes washed at a time. 

  • A lighting effect that fills a scene with a chosen colour. 

  • Ten strikes, or bushels, of oysters. 

  • The breaking of waves on the shore; the onwards rush of shallow water towards a beach. 

  • In arid and semi-arid regions, the normally dry bed of an intermittent or ephemeral stream; an arroyo or wadi. 

  • A situation in which losses and gains or advantages and disadvantages are equivalent; a situation in which there is no net change. 

  • The bow wave or wake of a moving ship, or the vortex from its screws. 

verb
  • To cover with water or any liquid; to wet; to fall on and moisten. 

  • To be cogent, convincing; to withstand critique. 

  • To bear without injury the operation of being washed. 

  • To overlay with a thin coat of metal. 

  • To cause dephosphorization of (molten pig iron) by adding substances containing iron oxide, and sometimes manganese oxide. 

  • To be eroded or carried away by the action of water. 

  • To move with a lapping or swashing sound; to lap or splash. 

  • To separate valuable material (such as gold) from worthless material by the action of flowing water. 

  • To move or erode by the force of water in motion. 

  • To clean oneself with water. 

  • To cover with a thin or watery coat of colour; to tint lightly and thinly. 

  • To pass (a gas or gaseous mixture) through or over a liquid for the purpose of purifying it, especially by removing soluble constituents. 

  • To clean with water. 

  • To be wasted or worn away by the action of water, as by a running or overflowing stream, or by the dashing of the sea; said of road, a beach, etc. 

How often have the words veneer and wash occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )