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Glite Dictionary
to sidle up

to sidle up

4 7.6
To move close to someone quietly to pretend to be friendly and get their favour
  • phrasal verb
  • /ˈsaɪdəl ʌp/
translation icon : acercarse sigilosamente
  • While they were so preoccupied, Glenn found the right moment to sidle up to Bianca.
  • sidled up to the girl
  • sidled up to the bar
  • sidled up to a woman

Examples

  • During the meeting, he tried to sidle up to his boss while discussing a promotion.

  • MAN: Sidle up to him, and then ask for a raise.

    Big (1988)

  • When the group took a break, I sidled up to her and asked if she knew any of the guests.

    Fiction book (1991)

  • One of his colleagues sidled up to him and said, "What's up, Crazy Eddie?"

    Fiction book (1998)

  • While Francisco's attention has been on the natives, Hector has sidled up to him, still hoping to ingratiate himself.

    Fiction book (1993)

  • As the party continued, she decided to sidle up to him and ask about his plans for the future.

  • I noticed a stranger sidle up to me while I was waiting in line at the coffee shop.

Synonyms

to come up to
vsto sidle up
184 2.2

To go up to someone to speak to them

approaches to speak but with a quiet flattering motive
to sneak up
vsto sidle up
101 4.5

To move quietly toward someone or something without being noticed

approaches stealthily but usually to flatter or gain favour
to creep up
vsto sidle up
33 4.6

To move or happen slowly and quietly so it is not noticed

approaches slowly but with an added insincere flattering intent
to cozy up
vsto sidle up
  • Informal
6 7.0

To try to make someone like you for your own advantage, often in a fake way

seeks favour but does so by quietly approaching someone closely
to sidle
vsto sidle up
5 8.1

To move slowly and quietly to the side to avoid being noticed

approaches quietly with the aim to flatter or gain favour
to play up
vsto sidle up
  • Informal
1 5.5

Try to get someone's approval by giving false praise

aims to gain favour but usually without a quiet physical approach
to shine up
vsto sidle up
  • Informal
1 8.0

Try to make someone like you by giving fake praise or acting friendly

seeks favour but commonly lacks the quiet sideways physical approach
to cotton up
vsto sidle up
  • UK
9.8

To act friendly to someone to get what you want

tries to ingratiate while also involving a quiet close physical approach

Antonyms

to confront
310 4.1

Face someone directly in an angry or challenging way to accuse them

How Direct

to barge in
  • Informal
59 5.5
to come up to
184 2.2
to sidle up
4 7.6
to hang back
34 4.6

Surface Forms

sidle up infinitive
sidled up past
sidled up past participle
sidling up present participle
sidles up third person singular

Morphology

sidle + up

The meaning 'to approach someone in a quiet, cautious manner' follows directly from combining 'sidle' (to walk sideways to avoid attention) with 'up' (toward/closer), since the verb supplies the manner and the particle marks movement toward a target. The additional pragmatic nuance (e.g. ingratiating or insincere intent) may rely on context, but the core approachive sense is predictable for a learner who knows both constituents.

Etymology

The phrasal verb sidle up comes from the image of someone moving quietly along another person's side, where sidle means to move sideways and up means toward them. So it means 'to approach someone quietly and often to say nice things or try to get their support'.