1. To cover something with a hard smooth and hard finish that results in a shiny coating: Alfred was varnishing the family dining table.

Shelby showed her son how to varnish the bookcase and then to give it a coat of wax.

2. To embellish, to adorn, to disguise, or to gloss over: Tammy tends to varnish the truth about her trip to France in order to make her story more interesting.

Calvin varnished his report by glossing over some of the errors that the committee made during the project.