SYCOPHANT

Pronunciation (US): (GB):

Meaning:

A person who tries to please someone in order to gain a personal advantage

Synonyms:

ass-kisser; crawler; lackey; sycophant; toady

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Hypernyms ("sycophant" is a kind of...):

adulator; flatterer (a person who uses flattery)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "sycophant"):

apple polisher; bootlicker; fawner; groveler; groveller; truckler (someone who humbles himself as a sign of respect; who behaves as if he had no self-respect)

goody-goody (a person who behaves extremely well in order to please a superior)

Derivation:

sycophancy (fawning obsequiousness)

sycophantic (attempting to win favor by flattery)

sycophantic (attempting to win favor from influential people by flattery)