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to honey

to honey

1 8.1
To speak very kindly to someone to get something from them
  • verb
  • /ˈhʌni/
  • Informal
translation icon : halagar
  • Just go, honey, go!

Examples

  • Don't honey me.

  • The manager spoke to her honey, hoping to gain her support for the new project.

  • Because she wants to get some female voters back whose husband say, look, honey, it's better for our taxes if you vote for Trump.

  • Honey how are you gonna make a living at that?

  • He said, honey, in your speech today, make sure you mention my remarkable advice.

  • Ruth has got everything under control, don't you honey?

  • He always calls his assistant honey to make her feel appreciated during meetings.

  • In a sweet tone, she said, honey, would you help me with this task?

Synonyms

to fawn
vsto honey
25 7.7

Act very friendly and praise someone to gain their favor

is more about sweet talk than prolonged submissive behavior
to sweet-talk
vsto honey
  • Informal
23 5.3

To persuade someone by saying nice things to them

is more affectionate and personal than neutral persuasive flattery
to kiss up
vsto honey
  • Informal
16 7.9

Say nice things to someone to get their help or a reward

uses sweet affectionate words specifically rather than broad ingratiation
to butter up
vsto honey
  • Informal
13 4.2

Say nice things to someone to get what you want

is sweeter and more affectionate than blunt transactional flattery
to curry favor
vsto honey
  • US
10 7.4

To try to get someone to like you by praising them or being too helpful

leans more on speaking sweetly than on helpful actions to win favor
to toady
vsto honey
1 9.1

Flatter and obey someone in power to get their favor

is less servile and more about affectionate speech for general gain
to play up
vsto honey
  • Informal
1 5.5

Try to get someone's approval by giving false praise

relies on sweet affectionate speech rather than general insincere acts
to pour honey in someone's ear
vsto honey
  • Informal
9.9

Say nice words you do not mean to get something from someone

focuses more on affectionate speech than on deceiving someone
to honey up to
vsto honey
  • Informal
8.8

To please someone with too many compliments to get a favor

emphasizes speaking sweetly rather than broad ingratiating actions

Antonyms

55 2.2

Speak angrily to someone who has done something wrong

22 6.8

A strong comment that shows disapproval of someone's actions

Idioms

A humorous way to say you find a woman extremely attractive

9.9

Act very bravely and without backing down

Say nice words you do not mean to get something from someone

Phrasal Verbs

to honey up to
  • Informal
8.8

To please someone with too many compliments to get a favor

Compounds

3 1.4

A sweet sticky pastry like a spiral roll flavored with honey and cinnamon

A color that is yellowish brown like honey

1 2.5

A sweet spicy cake made with honey that people eat at holidays

Africanized honey bee
  • Specialized
1 7.2

A honey bee bred from African and European bees that is very aggressive and spreads across the Americas

honey badger
  • Slang
1 8.2

A tough, brave person who keeps trying even in danger

honey badger
  • Indian
1 7.6

A strong, fierce mammal from Africa and southern Asia that hunts at night and breaks into beehives

honey do list
  • Informal
1 8.6

A list of small jobs one partner asks the other to do at home

1 8.6

A tall North American tree with long twisted seed pods and hard reddish-brown wood

A form of honey in which part of the sugar has formed small crystals, making it thick or solid

A plant that lives for many years with bright yellow flowers that attract bees and butterflies

7.9

An animal from tropical America that lives in trees and uses its long tail to hold branches while eating fruit

honey bell
  • South African
9.9

A small African shrub with long hanging stems and yellow flowers that smell sweet

9.3

A tropical American tree that bears small sweet juicy fruits with green skin

honey bucket
  • Informal
9.1

A portable toilet used outdoors when there is no plumbing

A large hunting bird that eats young bees and small animals like mice and lizards

A thin hard sweet made with honey that breaks easily

honey eater
  • Australian
8.8

A bird that uses a long thin beak to drink nectar from flowers

An edible mushroom with honey-colored caps that grows at tree bases and must be cooked before eating

honey fungus
  • Specialized
7.0

A very large fungus made of connected underground parts that spreads and kills trees

honey gland
  • Specialized
7.7

A small part of a plant or animal that makes a sweet liquid to attract insects like bees

honey guide
  • Indian
9.6

A small African and Asian bird that eats honey and wax from bees and leads people to bee nests

honey hole
  • Informal
8.3

A place where many good things are found, often a favorite fishing spot

A thorny small tree with deep roots that makes sweet pods eaten by farm animals

A honey-colored edible mushroom that grows near tree roots in late summer and autumn and must be cooked before eating

A plant that makes sweet liquid bees use to make honey

honey-flower
  • Australian
9.1

An Australian shrub with groups of sweet flowers that attract bees and birds

To speak in a sweet, flattering way to hide real intentions

Dark sweet spread made by bees from sticky drops on leaves with a strong rich taste

Having the sweet smell of honey

A thing that is very sweet and makes you feel happy

A thorny small tree with deep roots that grows in dry areas and has sweet pods used as animal feed

How Flattering

to fawn
25 7.7
to butter up
  • Informal
13 4.2
to flatter
100 3.6
to honey
  • Informal
1 8.1
to compliment
95 1.6
to praise
331 1.0

Surface Forms

honey infinitive
honeyed past
honeyed past participle
honeying present participle
honeys third person singular

Etymology

Honey meaning to flatter comes from the idea of making words as 'sweet' as honey, so someone who 'honeys' another speaks in a very pleasing, flattering way. So to 'honey' someone is to use sweet talk to get a favour.