toadyish

9.9

Being too friendly and praising someone important to get favor

adjective
/ˈtoʊdiɪʃ/

: adulador

She gave a toadyish speech praising the boss at every opportunity.

Examples

His toadyish behavior annoyed everyone in the meeting.
His constant, toadyish compliments made everyone uncomfortable.
Despite his qualifications, his toadyish attitude annoyed his colleagues.
She has a toadyish attitude towards her boss.
The toadyish behavior of the assistant frustrated the employees who valued honesty.
His toadyish compliments to the boss made everyone else uncomfortable.
She adopted a toadyish attitude, constantly agreeing with her superior to secure a promotion.

Synonyms

obsequious

vstoadyish

Formal

7 9.3

Trying too hard to please someone in a way that seems false

focuses more on servile acts toward powerful people to gain advantage

sycophantic

vstoadyish

Formal

4 9.2

Giving too much praise to an important person to gain favor

is more servile and aimed at gaining favor from authority figures

ingratiating

vstoadyish

1 7.3

Pretending to be friendly to make someone like you

is specifically servile toward those in authority for advantage

kissy

vstoadyish

Informal

1 8.0

Acting overly loving but not sincere

is more servile toward important people rather than casual affection

buttery

vstoadyish

1 7.9

Talking in a smooth, not sincere way to seem friendly

is aimed specifically at powerful people to gain personal advantage

adulatory

vstoadyish

Formal

1 9.1

Giving much praise that does not seem honest

is less general praise and more servile toward authority for benefit

swarmy

vstoadyish

1 9.5

Too polite or friendly in a way that does not seem sincere

is more servile and targeted at authority to win favors or gain

bootlicking

vstoadyish

Offensive

8.6

Acting too friendly and praising people in power to get favors

is specifically about servility toward authority for personal benefit

fawning

vstoadyish

7.4

Showing too much praise and attention to please someone

is more about servile flattery aimed at authority figures

ingratiatory

vstoadyish

9.6

Trying to please someone to get their approval, often not sincere

is more about servile behavior toward important people for gain

Antonyms

independent

984 2.3

Not controlled by others

assertive

42 4.2

Showing confidence when saying what you want or think

How Servile

obsequious

Formal

7 9.3

toadyish

9.9

servile

3 7.4

polite

329 1.0

Surface Forms

toadyish positive

Morphology

toadyish = toady (transparent) = toady + ish

The adjective is formed by adding the productive suffix '-ish' to 'toady', meaning 'somewhat like or characteristic of a toady', which is directly inferable.

Etymology

Toadyish comes from toady, which came from the old name toad-eater for a showman who pretended to eat a 'toad' to please people and win their support. So toadyish means acting 'too flattering' or like someone who tries to please an important person to get favor.