as in flunkey
a person who flatters another in order to get ahead
be careful not to mistake sycophants for true friends
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of sycophant
New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 18 May 2025
There are still sycophants and acolytes, but no savvy producers to make his head-scratching moves appear to make sense.
—Laura Bassett, Rolling Stone, 14 Apr. 2025
This is the grim lesson—one that the ambitious sycophants who attach themselves to power have always been slow to learn—of Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall Trilogy, a series of fat, dense novels that filter the reign of Henry VIII through the rise and fall of his Machiavellian advisor, Thomas Cromwell.
—Judy Berman, Time, 28 Mar. 2025
Heslov said that Clooney has made sure to keep his old friends close, so he isn’t surrounded by sycophants.
—Thea Traff, New York Times, 20 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sycophant
Adjective
The administration may be populated with sycophants and true believers, but Justice Department attorneys and Homeland Security officials are not stupid.
—New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 18 May 2025
There are still sycophants and acolytes, but no savvy producers to make his head-scratching moves appear to make sense.
—Laura Bassett, Rolling Stone, 14 Apr. 2025
This is the grim lesson—one that the ambitious sycophants who attach themselves to power have always been slow to learn—of Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall Trilogy, a series of fat, dense novels that filter the reign of Henry VIII through the rise and fall of his Machiavellian advisor, Thomas Cromwell.
—Judy Berman, Time, 28 Mar. 2025
Heslov said that Clooney has made sure to keep his old friends close, so he isn’t surrounded by sycophants.
—Thea Traff, New York Times, 20 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sycophant
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sycophant
Adjective
-
Constantly giving me positive attention, which felt, at times, sycophantic.—
Cathy Hackl,
Forbes.com,
23 June 2025
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After the model has been trained, companies can set system prompts, or guidelines, for how the model should behave to minimize sycophantic behavior.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
12 June 2025
Noun
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Courtesy of Lucasfilm On an isolated farm at the outer reaches of a fascist empire, a mid-level government toady interrogates his victims.—
Jake Kleinman,
Wired News,
23 Apr. 2025
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The anecdote illustrates the contrast in competence and grasp of real world dangers between Reagan’s team and Trump’s toadies — and also between these presidents themselves.—
George Skelton,
Los Angeles Times,
31 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Instead, the president and his frenzied lickspittles pumped up the volume.—
Pat Beall,
Sun Sentinel,
13 June 2025
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Republican lickspittles like Lindsey Graham and Jim Banks praised Trump and trashed Zelenskyy while Russian leaders rejoiced.—
Maureen Dowd,
The Mercury News,
4 Mar. 2025
Noun
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But the joke’s on us — Republican senators, who are the only players with any real power to stop them, have simply decided not to, all so that President Camacho can play at government with his favorite suck-ups.—
S.E. Cupp,
New York Daily News,
4 Feb. 2025
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Sara Fischer, Dave Lawler Dec 23, 2024 - Politics & Policy Media's suck-up moment Fearing political retribution and strained by new business challenges, media companies that once covered President-elect Trump with skepticism — and in many cases, disdain — are reconsidering their approach.—
Sara Fischer,
Axios,
14 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Her niftiest fight sequence looks like abstract art: a stark black-and-white aerial pan of her shadow battling minions down a hallway.—
Amy Nicholson,
Los Angeles Times,
1 May 2025
-
Negan banished him and seized control of the Dama’s minions.—
Charlie Mason,
TVLine,
8 June 2025
Noun
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Of course, McCreery fans can also hear a few songs from McCreery himself.—
Jessica Nicholson,
Billboard,
26 June 2025
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Most observers projected the Chinese center would go in the second round of the 2025 NBA draft, so the Portland Trail Blazers’ decision to select him with the 16th overall pick shocked the crowd at New York’s Barclays Center, and delighted Chinese fans watching back at home on a weekday morning.—
Fred He,
CNN Money,
26 June 2025
Noun
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Before her family arrives, Bree tries to shoot Grady, but once Grady’s henchman captures Diller, she’s forced to make a choice: drop the gun or watch her son die.—
Keith Langston,
People.com,
21 June 2025
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In a moment of sly genius, Duke gained entry by concealing himself as one of Lyle’s ghostly henchmen using a rubber band and a piece of white tissue as his disguise.—
Hazlitt,
Hazlitt,
18 June 2025
Noun
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The knowledge that my life only matters as a body for labor feeds on my heart like a parasite.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
26 June 2025
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The insect, along with a second specimen of a young ant infected with a similar fungus, are two of the oldest examples of a bizarre natural phenomenon that involves fungal parasites hijacking the bodies of their hosts before ultimately killing them.—
Katie Hunt,
CNN Money,
24 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Sycophant.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sycophant. Accessed 4 Jul. 2025.
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