as in obsequious
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as in sycophancy
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Dissimilar Words
as in fussing
to use flattery or the doing of favors in order to win approval especially from a superior
a student who could not wait to fawn over the new teacher
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Recent Examples of fawning
Sarah Scott, Parents, 25 Aug. 2025
Malia Mendez, Twin Cities, 4 Jan. 2026
Cut to Yerin Ha’s Sophie Baek, the illegitimate daughter of the Earl of Penwood, fawning over the idea of attending a ball.
—Dessi Gomez, Deadline, 25 Dec. 2025
Ebeling and Alvarez continued to shoot projects together and frequently sent each other mutually fawning messages.
—E. Alex Jung, Vulture, 13 Nov. 2025
Instead of supporting allies in NATO and Ukraine against aggressive Russian territorial expansion, the United States has proposed drastic cuts to defensive military support measures and played fawning host to Vladimir Putin.
—Time, 28 Oct. 2025
But there were – among the fawning compliments and the conviction an elusive peace was near – bits of good news for Ukraine.
—Nick Paton Walsh, CNN Money, 18 Oct. 2025
But on the scoreboard and perhaps in the eyes of football fans and perhaps even the still-fawning North Carolina administration?
—Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 16 Oct. 2025
Since his birth in 2014, photos and videos of Denny have been shared on social media, with users often fawning over him and calling him sweet.
—Saleen Martin, USA Today, 14 Oct. 2025
Social media, then, too, was flooded with morally bankrupt leftists lauding the killing and fawning over the killer.
—The Editorial Board, Oc Register, 14 Sep. 2025
Noun
According to Gaiani, drinking or using drugs before social situations is a major sign that your teen may be using alcohol to cope with fawning and to feel more comfortable or confident.
—Sarah Scott, Parents, 25 Aug. 2025
Verb
The culprits were Gen Zers fawning over how cute cozy Snoopy was, often on social media.
—Malia Mendez, Twin Cities, 4 Jan. 2026
Cut to Yerin Ha’s Sophie Baek, the illegitimate daughter of the Earl of Penwood, fawning over the idea of attending a ball.
—Dessi Gomez, Deadline, 25 Dec. 2025
Ebeling and Alvarez continued to shoot projects together and frequently sent each other mutually fawning messages.
—E. Alex Jung, Vulture, 13 Nov. 2025
Instead of supporting allies in NATO and Ukraine against aggressive Russian territorial expansion, the United States has proposed drastic cuts to defensive military support measures and played fawning host to Vladimir Putin.
—Time, 28 Oct. 2025
But there were – among the fawning compliments and the conviction an elusive peace was near – bits of good news for Ukraine.
—Nick Paton Walsh, CNN Money, 18 Oct. 2025
But on the scoreboard and perhaps in the eyes of football fans and perhaps even the still-fawning North Carolina administration?
—Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 16 Oct. 2025
Since his birth in 2014, photos and videos of Denny have been shared on social media, with users often fawning over him and calling him sweet.
—Saleen Martin, USA Today, 14 Oct. 2025
Social media, then, too, was flooded with morally bankrupt leftists lauding the killing and fawning over the killer.
—The Editorial Board, Oc Register, 14 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fawning
Adjective
-
This approach is best exemplified by NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, who in June sent Trump an obsequious message praising his Middle Eastern diplomacy and lauding him for getting European countries to spend more on defense.—
Philip H. Gordon,
Foreign Affairs,
16 Dec. 2025
-
The darkest thread, meanwhile, is the obsequious reverence for Epstein.—
Jessica Winter,
New Yorker,
17 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
And this sycophancy can cause serious ramifications.—
Arianna Huffington,
Time,
14 Jan. 2026
-
But while sycophancy is a symptom of user-model interaction, communication bias runs deeper.—
Adrian Kuenzler,
The Conversation,
19 Dec. 2025
Verb
-
As the migrants boarded, a man hoisted one of the passengers in the air, a fussing 8-month-old baby whose face was flushed red from the heat.—
Daniel Gonzalez,
AZCentral.com,
6 Nov. 2025
-
With five blades sandwiched between two moisturizing bars, this razor speeds up the entire process (no fussing around with shaving cream), nourishing dry skin and making nicks a rare occurrence.—
Sophia Panych,
Allure,
16 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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After all, the deal — for a long-forsaken project, an action-comedy franchise starring two aging stars — underscores the servile fealty of new Paramount owners Larry and David Ellison amid their recent maneuvering to take control of TikTok and Warner Bros. Discovery (the latter seemingly futile).—
Gary Baum,
HollywoodReporter,
6 Dec. 2025
-
Earlier this year, my colleague and bud Kelefa Sanneh suggested that music critics, as a lot, have gone soft—becoming submissive, overly agreeable, and, in some cases, nearly servile.—
Amanda Petrusich,
New Yorker,
1 Dec. 2025
Noun
-
In reality, Lawrence and Stone are longtime friends (and future collaborators) who haven't been shy about voicing their adoration for one another.—
Shania Russell,
Entertainment Weekly,
8 Jan. 2026
-
Jerry adoration of football is well documented, almost as much as his first true love — money.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
8 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Duff wrote alongside a drooling-face emoji.—
Allison DeGrushe,
Entertainment Weekly,
9 Jan. 2026
-
But pets who eat poinsettia flowers or leaves might develop drooling, vomiting or diarrhea.—
Phaedra Trethan,
USA Today,
12 Dec. 2025
Adjective
-
People who climb upward by sacrificing their integrity to slavish subservience almost always fall on their faces eventually.—
Robert B. Reich,
Hartford Courant,
21 Aug. 2025
-
The film’s slavish dedication to its source material — the challenging of which would open its own can of worms — demands ignoring all potential complexity in favor of didactic conclusions.—
Siddhant Adlakha,
Variety,
19 June 2025
Adjective
-
The inspector general's investigation found that Reece and Ruff — who were supervisor and subordinate — did not disclose their romantic relationship, which is a violation of a city executive order.—
Nushrat Rahman,
Freep.com,
6 Jan. 2026
-
Santa’s elves are subordinate Clauses.—
Richard Lederer,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
20 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Fawning.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fawning. Accessed 19 Jan. 2026.
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