whitewash

whitewash
   an attempt to hush up an embarrassing or shameful event
   The compound of lime and water, or similar non-permanent materials, easily and liberally applied to a surface, may provide temporary cover for the blemishes underneath:
    Then, in Hughes's opinion, the committee had produced a whitewash. (Colodny and Gettlin, 1991, writing about a report on the secret bombing of Vietnam)
   The author of a British report in February 2001 on the granting of citizenship to wealthy Indians with what seemed to many to be unseemly haste, despite their apparent ineligibility and their financial prodigality to causes dear to the heart of Government, was given, in the press if not elsewhere, the nickname Dulux, from a brand of paint, possibly because it was thought the affair had been more effectively covered up than by a simple whitewash.

How not to say what you mean: A dictionary of euphemisms. . 2014.

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  • Whitewash — Whitewash, or calcimine, kalsomine, or calsomine is a very low cost type of paint made from slaked lime (calcium hydroxide) and chalk (whiting). Various other additives have also been used. WhitewashWhitewash cures through a reaction with carbon… …   Wikipedia

  • whitewash — ► NOUN 1) a solution of lime and water or of whiting, size, and water, used for painting walls white. 2) a deliberate concealment of someone s mistakes or faults. 3) a victory by the same side in every game of a series. ► VERB 1) paint with… …   English terms dictionary

  • Whitewash — White wash , v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Whitewashed}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Whitewashing}.] [1913 Webster] 1. To apply a white liquid composition to; to whiten with whitewash. [1913 Webster] 2. To make white; to give a fair external appearance to; to clear… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • whitewash — [hwīt′wôsh΄, wīt′wôsh΄] n. 1. a mixture of lime, whiting, size, water, etc., for whitening walls, etc. 2. a cosmetic formerly used for making the skin fair 3. a) a glossing over or concealing of faults or defects in an effort to exonerate or give …   English World dictionary

  • Whitewash — White wash , n. [1913 Webster] 1. Any wash or liquid composition for whitening something, as a wash for making the skin fair. Addison. [1913 Webster] 2. A composition of line and water, or of whiting size, and water, or the like, used for… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • whitewash — A procedure set out in Appendix 1 to the City Code on Takeovers and Mergers by which the requirement for a mandatory offer under Rule 9 is waived by approval by target shareholders. Related links merger stakebuilding …   Law dictionary

  • whitewash — (v.) 1590s, to wash a building surface with white liquid, from WHITE (Cf. white) + WASH (Cf. wash). Figurative sense of to cover up, conceal is attested from 1762. Related: Whitewashed; whitewashing. The noun is recorded from 1690s …   Etymology dictionary

  • whitewash — vb whiten, gloze, gloss, *palliate, extenuate Analogous words: *disguise, cloak, mask, dissemble, camouflage: condone, *excuse …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • whitewash — [v] cover up the truth blanch, camouflage, conceal, exonerate, extenuate, gloss over, launder*, liberate, make light of*, paint, palliate, sugarcoat*, suppress, varnish, veneer, vindicate, white, whiten; concepts 49,63 Ant. expose, reveal, tell… …   New thesaurus

  • whitewash — [[t](h)wa͟ɪtwɒʃ[/t]] whitewashes, whitewashing, whitewashed 1) N UNCOUNT Whitewash is a mixture of lime or chalk and water that is used for painting walls white. 2) VERB If a wall or building has been whitewashed, it has been painted white with… …   English dictionary

  • whitewash — 1. tv. to make something look better than it really is; to conceal something bad. □ Now, don’t try to whitewash his incident. Open up about it. □ The mayor’s office tried to whitewash the whole affair. 2. n. an act or campaign of covering up… …   Dictionary of American slang and colloquial expressions

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