Definition of ADULATE

Other Words from adulation

adulate \ˈa-jə-ˌlāt,

-dyə-, -də- \ transitive verb

adulator \-ˌlā-tər

\ noun

adulatory \-lə-ˌtȯr-ē

\ adjective

adulatory crowds

Did You Know?

If "adulation" makes you think of a dog panting after its master, you're on the right etymological track; the word ultimately derives from the Latin verb adulari, meaning "to fawn on" (a sense used specifically of the affectionate behavior of dogs) or "to flatter." "Adulation," which came to us from Latin by way of Old French, can be traced back as far as the 14th century in English. The verb "adulate," the noun "adulator," and the adjective "adulatory" later joined the language.

Examples of adulation in a Sentence

The rugby player enjoyed the adulation of his fans. a writer who inspires adulation in her readers

Recent Examples on the Web

Back then Sandoval was a two-time All-Star third baseman with a World Series MVP trophy on his resume and hubris built by constant adulation and repeated success. — Jorge L. Ortiz, USA TODAY, "Prodigal Panda: Pablo Sandoval enjoying renaissance with Giants," 29 June 2018 Meanwhile, other users flooded the hashtag praising the president (#myleaderisSissiandproud) with flattery and adulation. — Washington Post, "Popular hashtags take sides on Egypt president’s leadership," 23 June 2018 But his animated heroine is now suiting up in a world brimming with Wonder Woman adulation. — Bryan Alexander, USA TODAY, "At last! Elastigirl stretches to new heights as star superhero of 'Incredibles 2'," 13 June 2018 What occured next at the Claremont Club was pure adulation, with coach Harshul Patel leaping into the arms of senior Tommy Trinh, Pham's doubles partner, in celebration. — Matt Szabo, latimes.com, "Fountain Valley boys’ tennis upsets top seed to earn first CIF title," 19 May 2018 His rise to power in 2013 was greeted with popular adulation and hope, but he is believed to have lost much of that support by introducing far-reaching reforms to overhaul the economy that sent prices soaring beyond the reach of many Egyptians. — Washington Post, "Egypt editor suggests more presidential terms for el-Sissi," 14 May 2018 However, not all renditions of the blonde came with similar adulation. — Natalie Maher, Billboard, "A Timeline of Kim Kardashian's Hair Evolution," 26 Feb. 2018 Bring the Noise' is a brilliant song, and Nation of Millions lived up to the adulation that the first album generated. — Ron Hart, Billboard, "Public Enemy Talks 'It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back' on Its 30th Anniversary," 30 June 2018 But with that comes more than just respect from his peers and adulation from millions of football fans around the country. — Steve Gardner, USA TODAY, "Antonio Brown blames media 'pressure' for his absence from Steelers OTAs," 12 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'adulation.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

History and Etymology for adulation

Middle English adulacioun "insincere praise, flattery," borrowed from Anglo-French, borrowed from Latin adūlātiōn-, adūlātiō, from adūlārī "to fawn upon (of dogs), praise insincerely" (of uncertain origin) + -tiōn-, -tiō, suffix of verbal action

Note: On the presumption that it is a denominal verb, Latin adūlārī has been compared with Sanskrit vāla-, vāra- "hair of a horse's tail, horsehair," Lithuanian valaĩ "horse's tail," though this is difficult both semantically and phonetically. More recently, the base of Latin avidus "greedy, eager" has been proposed as a source (see avid), via a prefixed *ad-awido-, syncopated to *ad-audo-, then with the second d dissimilated to l, yielding *adūlo-, "eagerly seeking something, flattering."

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