shellacking

Meanings

Verb

• Present participle of shellac

Noun

• A heavy defeat, drubbing, or beating; used particularly in sports and political contexts.

Origin

• shellac + --ing with interfix; the noun sense is a gerund from the present participle sense: shellac is used in floor polish; compare polishing, as in "the other boxer in the match polished the floor with me; I took quite a polishing".