as in to fuss
to use flattery or the doing of favors in order to win approval especially from a superior
the kind of office in which people feel they have to bootlick in order to get ahead
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Recent Examples of bootlick
Those who delay this fate the longest are bootlicking mediocrities — the survival of the sycophants.
—
Michael Gerson, Anchorage Daily News, 18 Mar. 2018
Michael Gerson, Anchorage Daily News, 18 Mar. 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bootlick
Verb
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This was the mid 1980s and tandem skydiving hadn’t been popularized yet, so his father, Roger, adjusted accordingly by stuffing carpet padding into the leg pads to stop him from fussing.—
Angelina Liu,
People.com,
2 Sep. 2025
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Inside, Seán glanced briefly away from the television as the women fussed at Orla’s return.—
Anne Enright,
New Yorker,
27 July 2025
Verb
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The secretary accused the AAP of kowtowing to corporate benefactors while ignoring the clear evidence that such vaccines are safe for children and can prevent serious illness.—
New York Daily News Editorial Board,
New York Daily News,
21 Aug. 2025
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Now, Republican candidates trip over themselves in displays of public faith to kowtow to the hardcore base that sees the show as a substitute for substance.—
Philip Elliott,
Time,
21 Aug. 2025
Verb
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The Empire was a sinister, one-note shadow: faceless Storm Troopers, toadying fascistic generals, a cackling emperor, and of course Darth Vader, an enigmatic demon masked and cloaked in black.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
25 Apr. 2025
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The only other psychological need that rivals his thirst for toadying is the pursuit of .—
Matt Robison,
MSNBC Newsweek,
31 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Symptoms may begin within minutes, which include heavy drooling—especially in cats—and redness on the skin and in or around the mouth.—
Liz O'Connell,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 Aug. 2025
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On day eight of his partial paralysis, Nini finally stopped drooling and could now walk gingerly.—
Tao Lin,
Harpers Magazine,
20 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Unless Trump’s art of the deal is all about truckling to Putin.—
Maureen Dowd,
The Mercury News,
4 Mar. 2025
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During the campaign, most of Trump’s fallen rivals blasted him in exceptional terms—before truckling to support him against Hillary Clinton.—
James Fallows,
The Atlantic,
8 Oct. 2017
Verb
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But this newsletter is more focused on how Trump and his fawning functionaries speak about and for him.—
Chris Brennan,
USA Today,
29 Aug. 2025
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Their Instagram announcement—a carousel of the couple's lavish garden engagement photoshoot—has been liked more than 35 million times since it was posted on August 26, with Swifties around the world fawning over the singer's gigantic ring.—
Melissa Fleur Afshar,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Bootlick.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bootlick. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
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