Thesaurus results for BROWNNOSER

brownnoser

noun

as in sycophant

a person who flatters another in order to get ahead surrounded himself with brainless brownnosers, so no wonder the company went down the tubes

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for brownnoser

Noun

For its sycophants, LIV Golf was a new flavor in the vanilla world of professional golf.

— Brody Miller, New York Times, 9 Sep. 2026
Our state is under siege by the skilled sycophants who surround the president and use his base desires as cover for their own destructive agendas.

— Rick Pearson, Chicago Tribune, 7 Sep. 2026

Definition of sycophant

Noun

Under Homelander’s rule, spineless toadies like The Deep would be the only remaining followers.

— Dani Di Placido, Forbes.com, 20 May 2026
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

Definition of toady

Noun

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
If all goes to hell and America devolves into a rank dictatorship, beware the bootlicker.

— Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 26 Jan. 2026

Definition of bootlicker

Noun

The implication is that American troop positioning throughout Europe will go to the biggest suck-ups.

— Rachel Marsden, Hartford Courant, 22 Aug. 2026
Matthew eventually one-ups the request by losing his boxers as well and going full Winnie the Pooh, which earns him the respect of his fellow suck-ups.

— David Fear, Rolling Stone, 23 Aug. 2025

Definition of suck-up

Noun

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
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

Definition of lickspittle

Noun

As the camera focused on a star player making a touchdown or a slam dunk, the faces of the fans behind them would coalesce into a colorful, murky abstraction.

— Ryan Sullivan, Artforum, 1 Oct. 2026
Hathaway, a New York City native and lifelong Knicks fan, was jokingly credited for their change in fortune by yours truly and a host of others.

— Marlow Stern, Variety, 1 Oct. 2026

Definition of fan

Noun

That may prove a moot point as Zelda was later seen giving her henchman, who had located the sisters, instructions to go as high as needed to secure their shares.

— Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 30 Sep. 2026
One of the villain’s henchmen was a small, shaggy blue creature with a long drooping snout and a sour expression that lived in a cigar box.

— Niranjana Rajalakshmi, Popular Science, 24 Sep. 2026

Definition of henchman

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.

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brownies

brownnoser

brownnosers

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“Brownnoser.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/brownnoser. Accessed 4 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of brownnoser

noun

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