as in to honey
to praise too much
a flunky who shamelessly butters up the boss
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Recent Examples of butter up
Ben spends the afternoon buttering up Ellie and praising her cake-icing skills, and even gives her the task of decorating the wedding cake.
—
Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 31 Mar. 2026
Some buttering up in your prompt can likely produce this.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 21 July 2025
Enter Rutte, who knew Trump from his time as Prime Minister, and who got to work buttering up the American president.
—Tom Nagorski, Time, 18 July 2025
Images of toadies buttering up an emperor come to mind.
—Bill Goodykoontz, AZCentral.com, 11 July 2025
Timothy Nwachukwu/Getty Images Anderson, currently a free agent, could be buttering up the Commanders to get a contract offer, but there is some truth to his statement.
—Victor Williams, MSNBC Newsweek, 2 July 2025
Add butter and pulse in or use a fork to break butter up into pea-size pieces.
—Mary Ann Esposito, Boston Herald, 21 May 2025
The preview for The Muppet Show reveals special guest Sabrina Carpenter buttering up Miss Piggy backstage.
—Ashley Iasimone, Billboard, 3 Sep. 2019
Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 31 Mar. 2026
Some buttering up in your prompt can likely produce this.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 21 July 2025
Enter Rutte, who knew Trump from his time as Prime Minister, and who got to work buttering up the American president.
—Tom Nagorski, Time, 18 July 2025
Images of toadies buttering up an emperor come to mind.
—Bill Goodykoontz, AZCentral.com, 11 July 2025
Timothy Nwachukwu/Getty Images Anderson, currently a free agent, could be buttering up the Commanders to get a contract offer, but there is some truth to his statement.
—Victor Williams, MSNBC Newsweek, 2 July 2025
Add butter and pulse in or use a fork to break butter up into pea-size pieces.
—Mary Ann Esposito, Boston Herald, 21 May 2025
The preview for The Muppet Show reveals special guest Sabrina Carpenter buttering up Miss Piggy backstage.
—Ashley Iasimone, Billboard, 3 Sep. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for butter up
Verb
-
Her voice, languid and honeyed, can glide over sensual R&B, bouncing reggaetón, shimmering pop or nostalgic jazz.—
Isabela Raygoza,
Billboard,
16 Oct. 2025
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Those harmonies — simultaneously honeyed and gravelly, providing just enough support without overshadowing, yet so powerful and full of potential — echoes Whitten.—
Angie Martoccio,
Rolling Stone,
2 July 2024
Verb
-
Borissov conceded defeat and congratulated the election winner.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
20 Apr. 2026
-
The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, on Monday congratulated Radev on his election victory.—
Veselin Toshkov,
Los Angeles Times,
20 Apr. 2026
Verb
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In her first varsity at-bat the next day against Lincoln-Way Central, Krauchun stroked a single up the middle.—
Tony Baranek,
Chicago Tribune,
21 Apr. 2026
-
Ferrer then went back to the sinker, placed the 98 mph pitch on the outside edge of the plate and Merrill stroked it to left, clearing the bases for a walk-off win in front the remnants of a sellout crowd of 46,095.—
Jeff Sanders,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
16 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Spray pillow spray onto your bed linens before sleep and massage the body cream into skin nightly.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
18 Apr. 2026
-
In another anecdote, Parker spoke about Pearlman offering to massage him in a hotel room.—
Ethan Millman,
HollywoodReporter,
15 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The response was praised by Republican politicians, who widely denounced the content of the chats, which was filled with slurs for Black, Jewish and gay people and included graphic calls for violence against Black people.—
Claire Heddles,
Miami Herald,
11 Apr. 2026
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Cornice headboards are trending again, praised for a classic, layered look.—
Sarah Lyon,
The Spruce,
11 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Parry applauded the decision by Deputy Judge Sarah Clarke to dismiss Mitch Winehouse's claim that the two were not entitled to sell the items and did so without his knowledge.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
20 Apr. 2026
-
Chevron, on the other hand, applauded the Supreme Court’s decision, saying the claims are related to work that the companies did under federal supervision.—
Lindsay Whitehurst,
Los Angeles Times,
20 Apr. 2026
Verb
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In a statement, investigators commended the victim for coming forward, noting the difficulty many juveniles face in reporting abuse.—
CBS Atlanta Digital Team,
CBS News,
21 Apr. 2026
-
Wiseman commended the pilot for the mission, Victor Glover, for his composure during the reentry.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
16 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
It’s made from a blend of polyester and spandex, which results in a feather-light weight and a slightly stretchy silhouette to flatter your figure.—
Alicia Geigel,
Southern Living,
21 Apr. 2026
-
Raphael’s father could manage people below him but also, as a courtier who wrote an entire epic about the life and exploits of Duke Federico, flatter the powerful above him.—
Zachary Fine,
New Yorker,
20 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Butter up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/butter%20up. Accessed 24 Apr. 2026.
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