adj ·Moderate ·College level

Definitions

Adjective

1. 1
   Excessively eager to please, especially for personal gain; obsequious, flattering.

   "The sycophantic slags all say / "I knew him first, and I knew him well""

Adjective

1. 1
   attempting to win favor by flattery wordnet
2. 2
   attempting to win favor from influential people by flattery wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms

bootlickinginsincereabjectadulatoryasslickybackscratching

Antonyms

All antonyms

arrogantbossycheekyobstinate

Example

More examples

"The sycophantic slags all say / "I knew him first, and I knew him well""

Etymology

From Ancient Greek σῡκοφᾰντῐκός (sūkophăntĭkós). By surface analysis, sycophant + -ic.

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