teflon

Trademark.

1. a fluorocarbon polymer with slippery, nonsticking properties; polytetrafluoroethylene.

adjective

2. characterized by imperviousness to blame or criticism: a Teflon politician.

noun

1. trademark polytetrafluoroethylene, when used in nonstick cooking vessels

adjective

2. facetious denoting the ability to evade blamethe Teflon president

n.commercially important synthetic polymer, 1945, proprietary name registered in U.S. by du Pont, from chemical name (poly)te(tra)fl(uoroethylene) + arbitrary ending -on; popularized as a coating of non-stick pans in 1960s; metaphoric extension, especially in reference to U.S. President Ronald Reagan, is attested from an Aug. 2, 1983, speech on the floor of Congress by Pat Schroeder.