as in brownnosers
a person who flatters another in order to get ahead
a transparent apple-polisher whose fulsome praise fooled no one
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for apple-polishers
Noun
-
Cederquist is one of scores of bad cops included in the book, as is one of his minions in the Stoughton crew, a guy named Calvin Butner.—
Howie Carr,
Boston Herald,
15 Oct. 2025 -
Amon, a tank-like Forgeknight; and Vex, a Siren who has the ability to spawn minions and drain life from enemies like a necromancer.—
Gieson Cacho,
Mercury News,
15 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
These methods sort through the DNA in a sample looking for specific genes that are signatures of parasites like pinworms, as well as bacterial pathogens.—
Veronique Greenwood,
Time,
24 Oct. 2025
-
Extreme temperatures, parasites, viruses, fungi, and bacteria are also major dangers.—
Maria Azzurra Volpe,
MSNBC Newsweek,
24 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
In addition to its roomy style, fans also enthusiastically cite the bag’s leather material for its durability.—
Michelle Baricevic,
Travel + Leisure,
28 Oct. 2025
-
Drafted in the first round out of Texas Tech in 2017—a move that many fans were initially skeptical of—Mahomes only saw a few spot appearances before eventually taking over as the Chiefs’ starting quarterback.—
Cole Sullivan,
MSNBC Newsweek,
28 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
In the past, Newsom denounced judges who ruled against them as toadies of the firearms industry.—
Dan Walters,
Mercury News,
5 Sep. 2025
-
Naturally his reliable Republican toadies lined up to support him.—
Bill Goodykoontz,
AZCentral.com,
8 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Besides being mugged by one of Iza’s henchmen, a brick was thrown through his window and his car was vandalized.—
Jesse Hyde,
Rolling Stone,
21 Oct. 2025
-
Clarke played villain henchmen Mac in the film partly set and filmed in Sydney, Australia.—
Mekishana Pierre,
Entertainment Weekly,
20 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
The only character who seems entirely transparent is Frederik, who can’t hide his resentment of his second-class spousal status or his contempt for the sycophants and mediocrities who cling to his wife like barnacles.—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
3 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
There are many ideas floating around about the best way to clean windows, from using newspaper to squeegees to sponges.—
Nellah Bailey McGough,
Southern Living,
26 Oct. 2025
-
Makeup sponges, on the other hand, hold bacteria, Frankel pointed out.—
Kaleigh Werner,
Footwear News,
23 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Obviously, that spoke to me, because my ancestors were slaves.—
Kyle Denis,
Billboard,
15 Oct. 2025
-
It was intended to ensure that Black people, including former slaves, had citizenship.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
5 Oct. 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Cite this Entry
“Apple-polishers.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/apple-polishers. Accessed 30 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share