as in brownnoser
a person who flatters another in order to get ahead
a transparent apple-polisher whose fulsome praise fooled no one
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for apple-polisher
Noun
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The world premiere on Sunday – in the presence of Illumination boss Chris Meledandri and director Pierre Coffin, who is also the origin of the minions’ unintelligible chatter – kicks off one of the biggest Annecy Film Festival’s yet.—
Melanie Goodfellow,
Deadline,
19 June 2026 -
The two key attractions include the Bello Bay Cruise river rapids ride where yellow minions face off against purple minions and the Bello Bay Golf Cart Derby teacups ride.—
Brady MacDonald,
Oc Register,
16 June 2026
Noun
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Still, despite the squad’s positivity, the match triggered a lot of bad memories in the minds of Spain fans everywhere ahead of what many thought could be an excellent chance to earn the nation’s second World Cup.—
Patrick Sung Cuadrado,
CNN Money,
21 June 2026
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Eftekhari worries that the mood at Iran’s first match, where fans and protesters clashed, affected the players.—
Gabriela Aoun Angueira,
Los Angeles Times,
21 June 2026
Noun
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Under Homelander’s rule, spineless toadies like The Deep would be the only remaining followers.—
Dani Di Placido,
Forbes.com,
20 May 2026
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His embrace of Trump‘s endorsement and refusal to admit that Joe Biden legitimately won the 2020 presidential election expose him as a toady.—
Gustavo Arellano,
Los Angeles Times,
13 May 2026
Noun
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Continue reading … SELENE RODRIGUEZ & AMMON BLAIR — While Mexico defends ‘sovereignty,’ cartels import a flesh-eating parasite into Texas.—
,
FOXNews.com,
17 June 2026
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The flesh-eating parasite has infected cattle, goats, and now a dog.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
17 June 2026
Noun
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Use a clean microfiber cloth or soft sponge to scrub the surface from top to bottom, and use an old toothbrush to clean the grout lines.—
Karen Brewer Grossman,
Southern Living,
20 June 2026
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Rinse your sponge or cloth and wipe again.—
Kate Van Pelt,
The Spruce,
20 June 2026
Noun
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Rarely has a president been surrounded by such an array of toadies and lickspittles, operating beyond their competence in an atmosphere of organizational chaos.—
Eliot A. Cohen,
The Atlantic,
1 Apr. 2026
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Firmly in control of the nation’s massive federal apparatus, MAGA and its Republican lickspittles in Congress have thrived on chaos.—
Steven Greenhut,
Oc Register,
23 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Ditto his despicable aides and Cabinet members, his unprincipled sycophants and suck-ups.—
Robert B. Reich,
Hartford Courant,
9 June 2026
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Trump’s worried sycophants probably know that the details of an eventual agreement likely do not matter very much at this point.—
Tom Nichols,
The Atlantic,
25 May 2026
Noun
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The result of this dynamic tension of bootlickers, according to Bernhard’s narrator, is the perpetual elevation and official anointment of mediocrity.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
19 Feb. 2026
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If all goes to hell and America devolves into a rank dictatorship, beware the bootlicker.—
Gustavo Arellano,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Jan. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Apple-polisher.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/apple-polisher. Accessed 21 Jun. 2026.
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