1
as in to fuss
to use flattery or the doing of favors in order to win approval especially from a superior
a young lieutenant constantly sucking up to the commanding officer
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in flunkey
a person who flatters another in order to get ahead
I'd like to give my boss a birthday present, but I don't want to look like a shameless suck-up
Synonyms & Similar Words
Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of suck (up)
Allison Morrow, CNN, 4 Dec. 2024
Back in the dawn of the Trump era — just prior to his 2017 inauguration — the line of would-be suck-ups queuing up for face time with the president-elect included a man with a distinguished name.
—Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 19 June 2023
Office suck-ups, popularized by television characters like Dwight Schrute in The Office and Tom Wambsgans in Succession, typically take their cues from those in charge.
—Matthew Boyle, Fortune, 26 Apr. 2023
Still, gossip mongers and suck-ups won’t go away unless managers remove the incentives to such behavior, while rewarding positive actions like collaboration.
—Matthew Boyle, Fortune, 26 Apr. 2023
As a shameless suck-up with a remarkable ability to fail upward, Tom is on track to conquer the world.
—Los Angeles Times Staff, Los Angeles Times, 24 Mar. 2023
Noun
To be sure, plenty of companies are still committed to DEI programs, and not all executives are morphing into insufferable suck-ups.
—Allison Morrow, CNN, 4 Dec. 2024
Back in the dawn of the Trump era — just prior to his 2017 inauguration — the line of would-be suck-ups queuing up for face time with the president-elect included a man with a distinguished name.
—Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 19 June 2023
Office suck-ups, popularized by television characters like Dwight Schrute in The Office and Tom Wambsgans in Succession, typically take their cues from those in charge.
—Matthew Boyle, Fortune, 26 Apr. 2023
Still, gossip mongers and suck-ups won’t go away unless managers remove the incentives to such behavior, while rewarding positive actions like collaboration.
—Matthew Boyle, Fortune, 26 Apr. 2023
As a shameless suck-up with a remarkable ability to fail upward, Tom is on track to conquer the world.
—Los Angeles Times Staff, Los Angeles Times, 24 Mar. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for suck (up)
Verb
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Palmieri also has a 16-team no-trade list but, like Nelson, certainly should not be fussed about being moved to a Cup contender for a few months.Arthur Staple, The Athletic, 16 Jan. 2025
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Later that day, the boys fuss around their grandmother at the dinner table.Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 13 Sep. 2024
Verb
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Neighbors called the residents of the apartment where Portillo was found dead problem tenants who were known to drink excessively and act rowdy.Ellen Moynihan, New York Daily News, 16 Jan. 2025
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Angelle’s go-to drink for this month is an Orange Brûlée.Patrice J. Williams, Essence, 15 Jan. 2025
Verb
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The rice is cooked perfectly and absorbs all the flavors of the broth and the cream of chicken mixture; the milk also helps to add an extra element of creaminess to the dish.Amanda Holstein, Southern Living, 11 Jan. 2025
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Cancer cells absorb large amounts of sugar, absorbing the radioactive material.Doru Paul, Health, 10 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Joseph Quinn and Fred Hechinger, under white powder and red eye shadow like Joker sycophants.Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 22 Nov. 2024
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But that progress will be harder to forge if Trump follows through on his vow to mass fire civil servants and replace them with sycophants.Kenny Torrella, Vox, 7 Dec. 2018
Verb
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In babies and toddlers, the first signs, such as drooling and scratching, may appear mild.Laura Dorwart, Verywell Health, 7 Jan. 2025
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Public health officials are urging residents who may have fed their pets Monarch raw products or other raw meat or dairy products, and who may have noticed their pet acting peculiar — lethargic, loss of motor control, drooling, etc. — to immediately contact their veterinarian.Susanne Rust, Los Angeles Times, 1 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Of course, being a junior senator and attaching your name to legislation that has little chance of being enacted—none of those have bills passed—is very different from being Vice-President and chief lickspittle to Trump.John Cassidy, The New Yorker, 22 July 2024
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Such as holding court, choosing your sobriquet, and naming imbecilic lickspittles to our Kingsguard.Kimberly Roots, TVLine, 7 July 2024
Verb
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CEXs have already had to kowtow to former EU member the United Kingdom’s inane crypto laws, forcing exchanges to code new front-ends and to exclude certain products and services from their UK service.Sean Lee, Forbes, 5 Jan. 2025
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The settlement sparked a backlash from both sides of the political aisle, with one half framing it as a dishonest entity being justly punished and the other accusing the news outlet of kowtowing to Trump.Benedict Cosgrove, Newsweek, 19 Dec. 2024
Noun
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The high toady will be 61 degrees and the low will be 39 degrees.Elainie Barraza, Orlando Sentinel, 12 Jan. 2025
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Alfred Molina, Ving Rhames, Toby Jones, and Paul Walter Hauser all drop by to add their touches to an underworld majordomo, a dogged BPD Special Ops officer, a political toady and Boston’s single dumbest thug, respectively.David Fear, Rolling Stone, 1 Aug. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near suck (up)
Cite this Entry
“Suck (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/suck%20%28up%29. Accessed 21 Jan. 2025.
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