Synonyms of flattering

flattering 1 of 2

adjective

1

as in laudatory

Related Words

• laudatory
• eulogistic
• favorable
• positive
• hagiographic
• panegyrical
• encomiastic
• complimentary
• appreciative
• friendly
• praiseful
• warm
• admiring
• commendatory
• approving
• supportive
• accepting
• respectful
• sympathetic
• laudative
• good
• applauding
• adulatory
• worshipful
• approbatory
• adoring
• worshipping
• advisory
• recommendatory
• idolizing

Dissimilar Words

• critical
• captious
• hypercritical
• overcritical
• censuring
• faultfinding
• disparaging
• scornful
• contemptuous
• unflattering
• disdainful
• negative
• slighting
• unfavorable
• belittling
• adverse
• derogatory
• uncomplimentary
• carping
• caviling
• unfriendly
• disapproving
• depreciatory
• unappreciative
• depreciative
• inappreciative

2

as in excessive

Related Words

• excessive
• fulsome
• pretentious
• inflated
• grandiose
• boastful
• stilted
• bombastic
• bloated
• pompous
• affected
• purple
• flowery
• grandiloquent
• ornate
• eloquent
• rhetorical
• florid
• fancy-pants
• high-sounding
• high-flown
• lofty
• bookish
• highfalutin
• aureate
• magnific
• learned
• elevated
• inkhorn

Dissimilar Words

• prosaic
• simple
• direct
• plain
• lean
• matter-of-fact
• straightforward
• unpoetic
• spare
• bald
• unadorned
• stark
• natural
• unaffected
• unpretentious
• plainspoken

flattering

2 of 2

verb

present participle of flatter

1

as in praising

to praise too much

the billionaire has an army of assistants who are eager to flatter him at every opportunity

Synonyms & Similar Words

• praising
• commending
• massaging
• congratulating
• applauding
• stroking
• puffing
• overpraising
• coaxing
• honeying
• fawning
• buttering up
• adulating
• belauding
• complimenting
• wooing
• cajoling
• toadying
• wheedling
• sucking (up to)
• extolling
• blarneying
• hero-worshipping
• kowtowing
• ingratiating
• soft-soaping
• eulogizing
• endearing
• blandishing
• idolizing
• lauding
• sweet-talking
• worshipping
• gushing
• felicitating
• romancing
• slavering
• courting
• slobbering
• drooling

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• disparaging
• belittling
• putting down
• depreciating
• decrying
• bad-mouthing

2

as in priding

to think highly of (oneself)

don't flatter yourself that no one has ever thought of that idea before

Synonyms & Similar Words

• priding
• congratulating
• pluming
• bragging
• boasting
• vaunting
• vaporing
• swaggering
• piquing
• swanking
• crowing
• felicitating
• swashing
• gasconading

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of flattering

Adjective

Combinations of hairy suede and pebbled leather, including a flattering blush-blond gradient, were also introduced. — Sandra Salibian, Footwear News, 7 Oct. 2026

Shockingly comfy for a mini dress, the Prettygarden Short A-line Mini Dress will get plenty of wear this fall with its wrinkle-free construction and flattering fit that comes in sizes ranging from XS to 2XL. — Merrell Readman, Travel + Leisure, 7 Oct. 2026

Verb

It’s made from 98 percent cotton with a hint of elastane, offering a comfortable, stretchy, and figure-flattering fit that accentuates my waistline, while the not-too-short hem elongates my legs. — Ali Faccenda, InStyle, 25 Sep. 2026

Said bows were worn undone, tapping into Waterhouse’s rock star aesthetic that is slightly disheveled but always flattering. — Amina Ayoud, Footwear News, 5 Sep. 2026