as in grovelling
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in fawning
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in fussing
to use flattery or the doing of favors in order to win approval especially from a superior
a satirical novel about an amoral go-getter who toadies his way to the top of the corporate ladder
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for toadying
Adjective
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Rhodes scholars have long had a reputation for being obsequious careerists, transforming themselves into whatever the elite consensus of the day deems worthy.—
airmail.news,
airmail.news,
1 June 2024 -
There were cover stories on him and obsequious profiles.—
Cory Franklin,
Twin Cities,
2 Jan. 2025
Noun
-
Neither leaders of pharma nor finance had to engage in golf outings, tithing schemes, or sycophancy to gain Trump’s attention.—
Jeffrey Sonnenfeld and Steven Tian,
TIME,
17 Jan. 2025
-
Then come the inevitable policy mistakes, as ideology and sycophancy overwhelm sound advice.—
Daron Acemoglu,
Foreign Affairs,
23 Mar. 2020
Adjective
-
Research conclusively shows that sycophantic AI behavior undermines trust and meaningful interaction.—
Cornelia C. Walther,
Forbes,
22 Jan. 2025
-
Their allies were sycophantic, and their natural opponents—especially the French—were submissive.—
Martin Sandbu,
Foreign Affairs,
12 Dec. 2017
Noun
-
The agency has been granted greater authority, with restrictions lifted on conducting arrests in sensitive locations such as schools, health-care facilities and places of worship.—
Matt Robison,
Newsweek,
25 Feb. 2025
-
Chuang's order does not prevent the Trump administration from conducting arrests in or near places of worship when authorized by a warrant.—
Melissa Quinn,
CBS News,
24 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
There’s nothing basic about Denzel’s adoration for his wife, though.—
Victoria Uwumarogie,
Essence,
25 Feb. 2025
-
Kathy Bates earns her Oscar and then some, taking Annie's terrifying adoration for James Caan's Sheldon to a disturbing, hide-your-eyes level.—
Brian Truitt,
USA TODAY,
21 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
His co-stars, like Will Ferrell’s savage Mugatu, Owen Wilson’s stoner hottie Hansel, and Nathan Lee Graham’s servile Todd — all so precise and well-defined in the original’s ravelike milieu — are doomed to retrace their old steps here.—
Sean Malin,
Vulture,
5 Sep. 2024
-
These officials could, in turn, redistribute some of their private goods among their own servile lieutenants, but the monarch retained ultimate power to grant or revoke their privileged status.—
Serhiy Kudelia,
Foreign Affairs,
27 Feb. 2014
Noun
-
People begin drifting to certain games or consoles, staring intently at a wall of idolatry.—
Christopher Cruz,
Rolling Stone,
27 Sep. 2024
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And while idolatry is not a new concept, the unique ways in which our culture demands that celebrities be close to us—closer than ever before—is in desperate need of examination.—
Taylor Crumpton,
TIME,
13 Sep. 2024
Adjective
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This is what people like Alexander Hamilton and others fought for: To set up a system where we are not subservient to a king or anyone else out of Washington.—
Hugh Cameron,
Newsweek,
20 Feb. 2025
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His real estate business, with finances overseen by a subservient non-CPA, committed so much deceit that the Trump Organization ended up convicted of tax crimes and its former chief financial officer went to jail—twice.—
Dan Alexander,
Forbes,
18 Feb. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Toadying.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/toadying. Accessed 13 Mar. 2025.
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