Merriam-Webster's Collegiate® Dictionary, 11th Edition
GLOSS
I. noun
Etymology: akin to Middle High German glosen to glow, shine; akin to Old English geolu yellow
Date: 1538
a surface luster or brightness ; shine ,
2. a deceptively attractive appearance , bright often superficial attractiveness , a transparent cosmetic preparation for adding shine and usually color to the lips,
II. transitive verb
Date: 1656
1. to mask the true nature of ; give a deceptively attractive appearance to, to deal with (a subject or problem) too lightly or not at all, to give a gloss to,
III. noun
Etymology: alteration of gloze, from Middle English glose, from Anglo-French, from Medieval Latin glosa, glossa, from Greek glōssa, glōtta tongue, language, obscure word; akin to Greek glōchis projecting point
Date: 1548
1. a brief explanation (as in the margin or between the lines of a text) of a difficult or obscure word or expression, a false and often willfully misleading interpretation (as of a text),
2. glossary , an interlinear translation, a continuous commentary accompanying a text, commentary , interpretation ,
IV. transitive verb
Date: 1603
1. to provide a gloss for ; explain , define , interpret , to dispose of by false or perverse interpretation