noun
ADJECTIVE
▪ thin
VERB + VENEER
▪ acquire , add
▪ maintain
▪ peel away , peel back , strip , strip away , strip off
▪
The lyrics strip the ~ of respectability from the music
▪ strip sb/sth of
▪
They have stripped the ~ of jingoism from the play by showing war in its true horror.
VENEER + VERB
▪ hide sth , mask sth
▪
He managed to acquire a thin ~ of knowledge to mask his real ignorance.
▪ crack
▪
For the first time her ~ of politeness began to crack.
PREPOSITION
▪ behind a/the ~ , beneath a/the ~ , under a/the ~
▪
They're brutal people behind their civilized ~.
▪ ~ of
▪
He concealed his darker side behind a ~ of respectability.