# To suck up to somebody



## Artrella

Hello! Please how would you* refer to * a person who sucks up to their boss?
Thank you


----------



## VenusEnvy

Artrella said:
			
		

> Please how would you refer to  a person who sucks up to their boss?


A brown-noser (comes from having one's nose in another's rear end)
A suck-up
A kiss-ass
A goody-two-shoes
The teacher's pet (or, boss's pet)
The Golden One


----------



## kiolbassa

Artrella said:
			
		

> Hello! Please how would you* refer to * a person who sucks up to their boss?
> Thank you



why not simply a "toady" : the person is just as disagreeable, but the word is less ..... ugly?


----------



## VenusEnvy

kiolbassa said:
			
		

> why not simply a "toady" : the person is just as disagreeable, but the word is less ..... ugly?


I've never heard of the word toady. It must be regional.

A person who sucks up to their boss is not disagreeable, though. In fact, they are very agreeable.


----------



## kiolbassa

VenusEnvy said:
			
		

> I've never heard of the word toady. It must be regional.
> 
> A person who sucks up to their boss is not disagreeable, though. In fact, they are very agreeable.



A "toady" (from a toad, as in frog) is quite common usage and means "one who flatters in the hope of gaining favors" (Merriam Webster). It is the term generally used in print - I agree with you that the words you proposed are more common in conversational English!

Agreeable or disagreeable, depends on the point of view. A flatterer is never agreeable to third parties (and only rarely so to the person he flatters).


----------



## cuchuflete

Try the WR English monolingual dictionary for a long list of possibilities.

Most AE speakers call a person who sucks up...a suckup!


----------



## Artrella

cuchuflete said:
			
		

> Try the WR English monolingual dictionary for a long list of possibilities.
> 
> Most AE speakers call a person who sucks up...a suckup!





suck_up  
A verb 
 1  *fawn, toady, truckle, bootlick, kowtow, kotow, suck_up*

   try to gain favor by cringing or flattering; "He is always kowtowing to his boss"  

Great!! Now a little question all these words can be used just like that as nouns?  Could you please tell me which ones are modified to become nouns?
Thank you!!!


----------



## kiolbassa

Artrella said:
			
		

> suck_up
> A verb
> 1  *fawn, toady, truckle, bootlick, kowtow, kotow, suck_up*
> 
> try to gain favor by cringing or flattering; "He is always kowtowing to his boss"
> 
> Great!! Now a little question all these words can be used just like that as nouns?  Could you please tell me which ones are modified to become nouns?
> Thank you!!!



at the risk of repeating myself .... a toady!    but you could also say a bootlicker. The others won't work as nouns.


----------



## Cath.S.

Not to do any bootlicking,  but I fully agree with _toady_ being the best word, isn't it BE only, though?


----------



## Kelly B

I've heard "toady" but it is very uncommon in the US. Bootlicker is used in the noun form; yes-man; sycophant, if you don't object to the high formality of the word.


----------



## ameridude

use the term "sycophant."  It's far more sophisticated than "brown-noser" and is not slang.


----------



## cuchuflete

If you want to describe a sycophant in a desparaging slang tone, use suck-up.



> "Charmed," I say, my head spinning. If Charm is the suck-up's suck-up, does she suck up to me or do I suck up to her? Suddenly I feel like a helpless bubble being sucked down the drain of life.



and...



> "You mean, 'The enemy of the suck-up is actually cool'?"
> 
> "That - or an even bigger suck-up."



http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/14/spy14.html

Or  





> *Virtual Yes Man - Your Personal Suck-Up*
> 
> Office, Job, Workplace Humor


 http://humor.about.com/gi/dynamic/o...reality.com/funnystuff/otherstuff/yesman.html


----------



## Cath.S.

ameridude said:
			
		

> use the term "sycophant." It's far more sophisticated than "brown-noser" and is not slang.


Would the average person understand it, though? The reason I'm asking is that in French we have _sycophante,_ which means the same, but that only university-educated or well-read people would understand and use.


----------



## mirandolina

The term psycophant is in fact rather "learned".  But everyone in Britain should know what the term "toady" means..


----------



## cuchuflete

egueule said:
			
		

> Would the average person understand it, though? The reason I'm asking is that in French we have _sycophante,_ which means the same, but that only university-educated or well-read people would understand and use.



Egueule,

Your statement is probably true in the US also.  Most people would not know the meaning of sycophant, and many wouldn't even recognize brown-noser, let alone know of Alexander Pope and The Dunciad.  That's why I suggested suck-up, which is understood by all young people and many of their parents.  It is slang, but commonly used.

Bootlicker and toady are not much used in the US, and are more apt to be understood by those who also recognize sycophant.

regards,
Cuchu


----------



## Cath.S.

cuchuflete said:
			
		

> Egueule,
> 
> Your statement is probably true in the US also. Most people would not know the meaning of sycophant, and many wouldn't even recognize brown-noser, let alone know of Alexander Pope and The Dunciad. That's why I suggested suck-up, which is understood by all young people and many of their parents. It is slang, but commonly used.
> 
> Bootlicker and toady are not much used in the US, and are more apt to be understood by those who also recognize sycophant.
> 
> regards,
> Cuchu


That's what I suspected. Thanks for answerng me, Cuchu.


----------



## Artrella

Hey people... to summarize.... what can I use in the US which is not derogatory nor very learnt and what can I use in the UK?

I'd appreciate your help!!


----------



## timpeac

I haven't really heard "bootlicker" said at all. I have heard "licker" said alot, which is not particularly rude to my ears, although it is colloquial, although I have always assumed it was short for "arse licker" which I have also heard alot but is definitiely rude.


----------



## jacinta

I don't know of any term that is not derogatory.  Most believe that it's not a good trait to be a suck-up or a brown-noser.  I don't know of any "nice" way to say it.


----------



## Artrella

jacinta said:
			
		

> I don't know of any term that is not derogatory.  Most believe that it's not a good trait to be a suck-up or a brown-noser.  I don't know of any "nice" way to say it.




Thank you J!!


----------



## lainyn

I rather like the word "syncophant" - Is there a verb?

I dislike them greatly, but I have to say, being the teacher's friend is far different from being the teacher's pet. I was misunderstood for years  hrmph. Just because a person wants older, smarter friends doesn't mean they need to suck-up to do it!


----------



## kiolbassa

lainyn said:
			
		

> I rather like the word "syncophant" - Is there a verb?
> 
> I dislike them greatly, but I have to say, being the teacher's friend is far different from being the teacher's pet. I was misunderstood for years  hrmph. Just because a person wants older, smarter friends doesn't mean they need to suck-up to do it!



no verb for sycophant (only 1 n), but an adverb (sycophantly).


----------



## languageGuy

One term I haven't seen mentioned yet: "yes-man" - an underling who always says yes to anything the boss says.


----------



## kiolbassa

languageGuy said:
			
		

> One term I haven't seen mentioned yet: "yes-man" - an underling who always says yes to anything the boss says.



yes, of course! 
although not all yes-men are toadies (but all toadies are perforce yes-men).


----------



## te gato

Here...

most would not understand..sycophant or toady...

but...brown-noser....a**-kisser...and suck-up..are very common..and understandable..but are used in a negitive way..for sucking up to your boss is not viewed highly here.. 
I don't know if there is a 'nice' way to say it...mmm..cozy-up to...play-up to...

tg


----------



## Cath.S.

kiolbassa said:
			
		

> no verb for sycophant (only 1 n), but an adverb (sycophantly).


Hey Lainyn, here's a whole bunch of derivations:

*sycophantic, sycophantically, sycophantish, sycophantishly, sycophantism, sycophantly.*


----------



## lainyn

Thanks! But what is the sophisticated verb for "to suck up"? May I suggest "to syncophate" - It sounds perfect!


----------



## Cath.S.

lainyn said:
			
		

> Thanks! But what is the sophisticated verb for "to suck up"? May I suggest "to syncophate" - It sounds perfect!


Lain, please don't destroy the word's amazing etymology!
sukos = _fig_ in Greek
http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=sycophant&searchmode=none
Better than to _suck up to_ would be _to fawn upon_, but I can't think of a verb equally as learned as _sycophant_.

One word we haven't mentioned yet is _lapdog_.


----------



## beatrizg

In modern Greek the term 'sykofantis' means slanderer. 
The verb 'sykofanto', means defame. 
So it's interesting to see that the meaning in English is quite different.


----------



## lainyn

I'm not destroying the etymology at all, it's just the evolution of language.


----------



## Artrella

beatrizg said:
			
		

> In modern Greek the term 'sykofantis' means slanderer.
> The verb 'sykofanto', means defame.
> So it's interesting to see that the meaning in English is quite different.




Yes Beatrizg... In Spanish it is "sicofante/a" and look at this >>

_*sicofanta. * 
 (Del lat. sycophanta, y este del gr. συκοφάντης). 
 1. m. Impostor, calumniador.  >>>  impostor/slanderer
Real Academia Española © Todos los derechos reservados_


----------



## Cath.S.

Lainyn,
here is an etymology of "syncophate":
_syn(sun) _= with (as in symbiosis, sympathy)
+
_kophos_ = dull or deaf or dumb (or deaf-and-dumb)
so that verb would mean "to gather an assembly of deaf-and-dumb people" (sorry I don't know the PC term, the ancient Greeks didn't either.)
I agree it is a most useful verb, but not quite what you were looking for.


----------



## lsp

lainyn said:
			
		

> I'm not destroying the etymology at all, it's just the evolution of language.


Inventing the verb is probably not an issue, I just think you have to lose the "n." The original word is sycophant, not sy*n*cophant.


----------



## lainyn

Wow, thanks for that Lsp, my eyes must have grazed over that lack of an N.


----------



## Troupian

What about "crawler", or even "creeper"? But maybe that's school jargon. It was certainly very common and frequently used in the 1970s in GB.


----------



## Isotta

Also, the euphemism "ingratiate."

Z.


----------



## river

SYCOPHANT = apple-polisher, lickspittle, spaniel, toad, toadeater, truckler, a sheep, parasite, flunky, lapdog, doughface, heeler [U. S.], sponger, sucker, tagtail


----------



## nycphotography

Also:
To flatter
To curry favor
To kowtow
A stuffed shirt

But generally, its best to lovingly craft a complete phrase that captures not only the broad essence of the act of sucking ass, but that also fully paints the character and personal style of the perpetrator.

Why merely call him a suck up, when you couldwax eloquent and say:

That sniveling whining little ass monkey never has a thing of his own to say, but just wait until Joe gives _his_ opinion, and he damn near breaks his neck nodding and babbling about how great its going to be.


----------



## claude23

Hi,

Have you got a synonymous for ass- kisser ? I am sorry because it's a bit vulgar but I don't know any other one.



Thank you for your understanding.

Claude.


----------



## Kelly B

Sycophant is an equivalent in a very high register; boot-licker is very colloquial but less vulgar. Brown-noser is very similar in imagery and level, but without the bad word.


----------



## You little ripper!

_Apple polisher, groveller, crawler._


----------



## cirrus

My personal favourite: lickspittle, a tad Victorian but insulting all the same.


----------



## Brioche

claude23 said:
			
		

> Hi,
> 
> Have you got a synonymous for ass- kisser ? I am sorry because it's a bit vulgar but I don't know any other one.
> 
> Thank you for your understanding.
> Claude.


 
toady _(literary)_
arse-licker
suck-hole


----------



## Chaska Ñawi

Also:  a kiss-ass.


----------



## foxfirebrand

Yes-man, toady, suck-up.  
.


----------



## cuchuflete

Kelly B said:
			
		

> Sycophant is an equivalent in a very high register; boot-licker is very colloquial but less vulgar. Brown-noser is very similar in imagery and level, but without the bad word.



Ah yes, the famous procession down Fleet Street.  I've written in another thread about the origin of Brown-nose.  Alexander Pope, in The Dunciad, created an image that is far more obscene than ass-kisser.  It involved publishers, depicted as pigs, each with his nose in the "bad word" of another pig/publisher.


----------



## nycphotography

Stuffed shirt.

Moving one to terms I myself have used to describe this kind of person:

Mini-him. (thank you Mike Myers for this creating this universal image)

his Evil-twin.

And my favorite:  an empty pipe.


----------



## Hakro

Is it possible to say 'brown-tongued' in English as we say in Finnish?


----------



## boonognog

Never heard "brown-tongued" before, but the image is clear...


----------



## boonognog

As for ass-kisser, a more "educated" word would be _sycophant_...



> adulator, apple polisher, back scratcher, backslapper, bootlick, bootlicker, brownie, brownnoser, crawler, cringer, doormat, fan, fawner, flatterer, flunky, footlicker, glad-hander, gofer, groupie, groveler, handshaker, hanger-on, lackey, lap-dog, lickspittle, minion, parasite, politician, puppet, slave, sniveler, spaniel, sponger, stooge, toadeater, toady, truckler, water boy, yes-man


----------



## boonognog

And I just remembered another one we used to always use -- _suck-up_.

_Don't be such a suck-up, Billy!  Tell him what you really think!_


----------



## fenixpollo

The brown-tongue reference nearly made me wretch.  

If you want licking imagery, try *boot-licker*.


----------



## Gaverz

Another one, used in schools, is "teacher's pet", where a student always attempts to please the teacher in order to become their favourite pupil.


----------



## Brioche

For me, a teacher's pet is the teacher's favoured or favourite student.

A teacher's pet is indulged by the teacher. The pet has not necessarily been a "apple polisher".  Sometimes a teacher is completely blind to the many faults of the pet - the rest of the class isn't!!


----------



## la reine victoria

A kowtower.


LRV


----------



## Paulfromitaly

Hi,

How would you address in both BE and AE someone who is used to sucking up a bit too much? 

ass-kisser , brownnose(r), lackey, toady, creep, suckie?


----------



## andersxman

Sorry, not a native speaker, _"bootlicker"_ is not on your list. Don't know if it's more BE or AE. Also "a suck up" exists, if I'm not mistaking.


----------



## river

See here http://forum.wordreference.com/archive/index.php?t-30830.html


----------



## Paulfromitaly

andersxman said:
			
		

> Sorry, not a native speaker, _"bootlicker"_ is not on your list. Don't know if it's more BE or AE. Also "a suck up" exists, if I'm not mistaking.



I know that there are many more than these.  I don't want to jot down a long list, but understand which of those substantives are normally used.


----------



## Paulfromitaly

river said:
			
		

> See here http://forum.wordreference.com/archive/index.php?t-30830.html




Cheers..


----------



## tojohndillonesq

Toady is dated, but not regional; it is common to all English speaking countries.  My question is the opposite:  is there a word for a person who is susceptible to sycophants?  Someone who favors sycophants above other people?  (After all, a sycophant is just being very nice; it is not a problem until the man in power decides to reward the behavior beyond reason.)



VenusEnvy said:


> I've never heard of the word toady. It must be regional.
> 
> A person who sucks up to their boss is not disagreeable, though. In fact, they are very agreeable.


----------



## AWordLover

Hi,

I'll bite at the challenge of finding a synonym that is not very derogatory.

I'd say, flatterer or yes-man. With flatterer,you can't be absolutely certain that the flattery is not sincere.

If looking for words that are LESS likely to be known, in line with sycophant, you could call someone an obsequious twit/<whatever>.


----------



## tojohndillonesq

Hi,

Thanks for the response!

Now that you have answered it helped clarify my question. What I am really after is the “syntax” of flattery. For example: 

The flatterer is a sycophant.
The person being flattered is the “sycophee.”
And the person who rewards flattery is a “sycophile”
Which would make people who hate to be flattered “sycoclasts.”
And people who hate to do any flattering would be “sycophobes”

I am going to repost this as a new thread to see if I can broaden the audience/response.

Best,

Scott


----------

