ADULATORY Synonyms: 74 Similar and Opposite Words

adulatory

adjective

Definition of adulatory

as in hagiographic

overly or insincerely flattering an office flunky who can be counted on to make an adulatory response to the boss's every suggestion

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in adoring

reflecting great admiration or devotion an adulatory eulogy delivered at a beloved teacher's retirement party

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of adulatory Besides being a record of events, the work is a crafty portrayal of kingship, presenting Akbar in an adulatory tone, as an exemplary and divinely favored ruler. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 9 Apr. 2026 Reggie’s solution is to hire Arthur Tobin (Daniel Radcliffe), an Oscar-winning documentarian, to make an adulatory film about him, changing public perception and opening new doors. — Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 18 Jan. 2026 Though the pilot wasn't picked up, Spinal Tap endured, acting as the primary subject of the first film's sendup of breathlessly adulatory rock biopics like Martin Scorsese's The Last Waltz. — Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 23 Oct. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for adulatory

Adjective

Though mighty hagiographic, McPhee’s ability to break down a player’s gifts makes a poetic case for the game.

— Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 18 June 2026
While these celebrity docs are hagiographic and formulaic, the interviews with Nadal and family and rivals like Federer and Novak Djokovic do push beyond the surface.

— Stuart Miller, Los Angeles Times, 18 May 2026

Definition of hagiographic

Adjective

Mom and daughter share adoring glances at an event to celebrate International Women's Day in London.

— Kate Hogan, PEOPLE, 21 Apr. 2026
The Patriots’ pass coverage without Christian Gonzalez, their atrocious inside linebacker play and roller-coaster special teams, which give any adoring fan a heart attack at a moment’s notice.

— Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 16 Sep. 2025

Definition of adoring

Adjective

Wildlife officials had found that many of these poisons worked their way through the food chain, sickening and killing owls, raptors, coyotes and mountain lions.

— Lila Seidman, Los Angeles Times, 16 Aug. 2026
More importantly, the China business, long a stalwart, started a sickening double-digit decline.

— Jim Cramer, CNBC, 13 Aug. 2026

Definition of sickening

Adjective

Except for the unfettered devotion in the latter is replaced by swooping strings and a gushy chorus that merely offer an antiseptic veneer.

— Melissa Ruggieri, USA Today, 18 June 2026
The announcement may come as a shock for country fans who have followed the couple through their sappy podcast appearances and gushy acceptance speeches.

— Emily St. Martin, Los Angeles Times, 16 June 2026

Definition of gushy

Adjective

One defense, beginning in the late eighteen-hundreds, was flypaper, sheets of which were coated on one side with an oleaginous substance that lured flies, then permanently trapped them.

— David Owen, The New Yorker, 27 July 2024
Ted Cruz, the perennial front-runner, is smug and oleaginous—hated equally by his colleagues and the public.

— Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 26 Sep. 2022

Definition of oleaginous

Adjective

As the coconut milk breaks and separates (cracks), look for traces of yellow-green oil bubbling at the edge or a slightly dark yellow-green oily film on top.

— Kate Bradshaw, Mercury News, 18 Aug. 2026
Every touch seems to leave behind an oily smudge on stainless steel.

— Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 18 Aug. 2026

Definition of oily

Adjective

Played with unctuous authority by the multilingual Danish performer Claes Bang, Kersten claims to have used his influence to obtain the freedom of thousands of concentration camp prisoners, and is obsessed with winning a Nobel Prize.

— Alissa Simon, Variety, 7 Aug. 2026
The uni—or sea urchin—come from Hokkaido and have an unctuous, egg yolk richness.

— Erika Ebsworth-Goold, Midwest Living, 3 Aug. 2026

Definition of unctuous

Adjective

Both titles possess the fulsome tones of Miyazaki-style Japanese anime.

— Kevin Giraud, Variety, 29 June 2026
In overturning that verdict, the appeals court said the jury's question should have gotten a more fulsome answer, including the possibility of discounting all the confessions.

— CBS News, CBS News, 22 June 2026

Definition of fulsome

Browse Nearby Words

adulations

adulatory

adult

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“Adulatory.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/adulatory. Accessed 24 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of adulatory

adjective

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