as in fussing
to use flattery or the doing of favors in order to win approval especially from a superior
you can try kowtowing to the boss, but he'll see right through you
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in subordinate
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of kowtowing
New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 21 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for kowtowing
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
Adjective
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They were issued by Fina RDC 2020, a certificate authority that’s subordinate to the root certificate holder Fina Root CA.—
Dan Goodin,
ArsTechnica,
3 Sep. 2025
-
And subordinate-superior relationships raise the risk of real and perceived favoritism.—
Kim Elsesser,
Forbes.com,
2 Sep. 2025
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
Adjective
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Bahrain is ruled by Sunnis and has a mostly Shiite population permanently restless over its servile condition.—
Graeme Wood,
The Atlantic,
13 June 2025
-
His servile defense secretary has threatened to deploy the military in other cities.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
13 June 2025
Adjective
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The Texas State Legislature was even more obsequious, approving a $15 million incentive package in 2013.—
Guthrie Scrimgeour,
Rolling Stone,
17 June 2025
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Softening the strongman The film starts with the loyal and somewhat obsequious journalist Pavel Zarubin interviewing Putin at the end of his long working day in the Kremlin, at 1:30 a.m.—
Peter Rutland,
The Conversation,
9 May 2025
Adjective
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In addition, the portrayal of the cultural setup between the dominant Alba and subservient Colorata is handled in a refreshingly non-preachy manner.—
Ollie Barder,
Forbes.com,
1 Sep. 2025
-
Japanese gardens aren’t subservient to symmetry in the way that many European gardens are.—
Lauren Groff,
The Atlantic,
20 Aug. 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
Adjective
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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
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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
Cite this Entry
“Kowtowing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/kowtowing. Accessed 11 Sep. 2025.
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