1
as in to fuss
to use flattery or the doing of favors in order to win approval especially from a superior
a young lieutenant constantly sucking up to the commanding officer
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in flunkey
a person who flatters another in order to get ahead
I'd like to give my boss a birthday present, but I don't want to look like a shameless suck-up
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of suck (up)
S.e. Cupp, New York Daily News, 4 Feb. 2025
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
To be sure, plenty of companies are still committed to DEI programs, and not all executives are morphing into insufferable suck-ups.
—Allison Morrow, CNN, 4 Dec. 2024
Back in the dawn of the Trump era — just prior to his 2017 inauguration — the line of would-be suck-ups queuing up for face time with the president-elect included a man with a distinguished name.
—Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 19 June 2023
Office suck-ups, popularized by television characters like Dwight Schrute in The Office and Tom Wambsgans in Succession, typically take their cues from those in charge.
—Matthew Boyle, Fortune, 26 Apr. 2023
Still, gossip mongers and suck-ups won’t go away unless managers remove the incentives to such behavior, while rewarding positive actions like collaboration.
—Matthew Boyle, Fortune, 26 Apr. 2023
As a shameless suck-up with a remarkable ability to fail upward, Tom is on track to conquer the world.
—Los Angeles Times Staff, Los Angeles Times, 24 Mar. 2023
Noun
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
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
To be sure, plenty of companies are still committed to DEI programs, and not all executives are morphing into insufferable suck-ups.
—Allison Morrow, CNN, 4 Dec. 2024
Back in the dawn of the Trump era — just prior to his 2017 inauguration — the line of would-be suck-ups queuing up for face time with the president-elect included a man with a distinguished name.
—Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 19 June 2023
Office suck-ups, popularized by television characters like Dwight Schrute in The Office and Tom Wambsgans in Succession, typically take their cues from those in charge.
—Matthew Boyle, Fortune, 26 Apr. 2023
Still, gossip mongers and suck-ups won’t go away unless managers remove the incentives to such behavior, while rewarding positive actions like collaboration.
—Matthew Boyle, Fortune, 26 Apr. 2023
As a shameless suck-up with a remarkable ability to fail upward, Tom is on track to conquer the world.
—Los Angeles Times Staff, Los Angeles Times, 24 Mar. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for suck (up)
Verb
-
No crying or fussing or squirming.—
Danielle Pergament,
SELF,
10 Apr. 2025
-
Really good, and if you’re not fussed about mod cons or hybrid tech, one can be sat on your driveway for just £18,850 ($24,388).—
Matthew MacConnell,
Forbes.com,
31 Mar. 2025
Verb
-
Zimmerman, 44, was scheduled to perform a multi-hour set alongside fellow electronic artist Zhu, who could also be seen drinking during the show, according to videos posted to social media.—
Anna Kaufman,
USA Today,
23 Apr. 2025
-
Van Hollen said those drinks were placed on the table by a Bukele aide, and that neither man drank them.—
Sheetal Banchariya,
New York Daily News,
22 Apr. 2025
Verb
-
This form of creatine is less bioavailable than creatine monohydrate, meaning your body doesn't absorb it as well.—
Jillian Kubala,
Health,
17 Apr. 2025
-
Because when so many Americans are tightening grocery budgets, scaling back meals, and absorbing the daily drip of scarcity, a pass that promises a burger a day doesn’t feel indulgent.—
Stephanie Gravalese,
Forbes.com,
16 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
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
Verb
-
Pay attention for signs of distress: panting, drooling, a high heart rate, dry nose, lethargy, or even vomiting, staggering or seizures.—
Kate Bradshaw,
The Mercury News,
3 Mar. 2025
-
The most-common ones include vomiting; diarrhea; lethargy; loss of appetite; drooling; tremors or seizures; difficulty breathing; and pale gums.—
Ross Rosenfeld,
Newsweek,
26 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
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
-
Of course, being a junior senator and attaching your name to legislation that has little chance of being enacted—none of those have bills passed—is very different from being Vice-President and chief lickspittle to Trump.—
John Cassidy,
The New Yorker,
22 July 2024
Verb
-
Xi became China’s most powerful political figure in half a century by promoting a new Chinese nationalism—not by kowtowing to anyone, least of all the president of the United States.—
Michael Schuman,
The Atlantic,
11 Apr. 2025
-
And Smoke and Stack are too suspicious to kowtow to these gate crashers.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
10 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
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
-
His assessment is based not on the slack-jawed idolatry of elite-media toadies, but on sources nobody else thought to ring up and poke.—
Harpers Magazine,
Harpers Magazine,
26 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Suck (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/suck%20%28up%29. Accessed 26 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share