Flattery

//ˈflæt.ɚ.i// name, noun

name, noun ·Moderate ·College level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    Excessive praise or approval, which is often insincere and sometimes contrived to win favour. uncountable

    "Don't you know that some of his contributions here are pure flattery?"

  2. 2
    excessive or insincere praise wordnet
  3. 3
    An instance of excessive praise. countable

    "But I pitty the flatteries, and ſelfe-applauſes of a careleſſe and impenitent heart: This jollity hath in it much danger, and vvithout ſome change, death."

Proper Noun
  1. 1
    A surname from Irish.

Synonyms

All synonyms
accoladeadulationadulationapotheosisass-kissingass-kissing

Example

More examples

"The attendant is good at flattery."

Etymology

Etymology 1

From Middle English flaterye, flaterie, from Old French flaterie, from the verb flater (“to flatter”). By surface analysis, flatter + -y (forming abstract nouns).

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Irish Ó Flaithre.

Related phrases

Cape Flatteryimitation is the sincerest form of flatteryself-flattery

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.