toadeater way
- noun
- /ˈtoʊdˌiːtər weɪ/
- Offensive
:
servilismo (ofensivo)
- The manager disliked employees with toadeater ways, preferring straightforward communication.
Examples
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Her toadeater way was obvious to everyone at the office, but it did not earn her any respect.
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His toadeater ways irritated those who valued honesty over flattery.
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His constant praise for the boss showed his toadeater way.
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Why do you always adopt such a toadeater way around management?
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Her toadeater way of flattering the new manager was clear to everyone in the office.
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His toadeater way of agreeing with everything the boss said made his coworkers distrust him.
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Many employees disliked her toadeater way because they preferred honesty over sycophancy.
Synonyms
1
9.5
A way of acting that praises a powerful person to get favors
A habit of flattering and obeying a person in power to gain favor
A way of acting that flatters a person, often a boss, to get favour
To act too polite and flattering to someone in power to gain approval
Antonyms
How Obsequious
Surface Forms
Morphology
toadeater + way
While 'way' (manner) is transparent, the key constituent 'toadeater' is rare/archaic or not attested in learners' lexicons and its idiomatic meaning 'sycophant' cannot be derived from the literal parts ('toad' + 'eater'). A B1 learner who only knows the literal constituent meanings would not predict the intended sense, so the overall phrase is opaque.
Etymology
Toadeater way comes from the old image of a 'toad-eater', a person who pretended to eat a toad to show they obeyed or to please someone powerful. That strange image explains why toadeater way means acting with extreme flattery or 'to flatter' to gain favor.