to curry favor

Examples

• All

• The French government is attempting to curry favor with traditional voters by instituting this ridiculous law.

  Blog text (29)

• Who was the FCC commissioner with whom they were trying to curry favor?

  WMD: Weapons of Mass Deception (2004)

• And many of the later look to curry favor with the former, since they are now part of the same "community."

  Academic text (2003)

• She's just trying to, you know, Curry favor with his fans.

  H3 Podcast

• "One of the goals of accepting responsibility is to curry favor," Navarre said.

  Blog text (21)

• I hold a generous view of Romney in that he will say anything to curry favor.

  Blog text (6)

• When the bill finally passed, it happened largely because Republicans in the Florida House needed to curry favor with black Democrats who backed the bill, according to several newspaper accounts.

  Academic text (2000)

• Hanne suspects that the official knew the Germans were going to lose the war and was trying to curry favor with the Danes in advance.

  Academic text (1999)

• Both the politicians and the agencies involved seek to curry favor with particular constituencies and pursue their own organizational and bureaucratic self-interests.

  Academic text (2000)

• To lawyers for the defendants, the charges boil down to a lame attempt in the waning days of the Bush administration to curry favor with an Iraqi government that had grown increasingly critical of the conduct of U.S. forces.

  Academic text (2009)

Synonyms

F

to flatter

vsto curry favor

100 3.6

Praise someone with words you do not mean to get their help

commonly complements praise with helpful behaviour to win approval

C

to court

vsto curry favor

54 5.5

To try to get someone's support by giving attention or praise

adds a tendency to use helpful or useful actions for advantage

S

to suck up

vsto curry favor

• Informal

26 8.0

To praise someone to get their approval

may mix insincere praise with active helpfulness to secure approval

F

to fawn

vsto curry favor

25 7.7

Act very friendly and praise someone to gain their favor

often pairs pleasing acts with practical helpfulness to gain advantage

W

to woo

vsto curry favor

22 5.6

To try to get support or approval by pleasing people

often emphasizes useful actions as well as pleasing behaviour for gain

K

to kiss up

vsto curry favor

• Informal

16 7.9

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

tends to include helpful or useful actions as a tactic as well

B

to butter up

vsto curry favor

• Informal

13 4.2

Say nice things to someone to get what you want

also involves doing helpful things to secure approval or advantage

I

to ingratiate

vsto curry favor

10 8.2

Try to make someone like you by praising them or doing kind things

often adds overt helpful behaviour as well as pleasing acts

K

to kiss ass

vsto curry favor

• Offensive

8 9.5

To try to please someone in power to get an advantage

often adds practical helpful acts beyond praising to win approval

B

to brown-nose

vsto curry favor

• Offensive

4 8.2

To flatter someone in power without meaning it to get their favor

adds a stronger element of doing helpful tasks for advantage

B

to bow and scrape

vsto curry favor

• Archaic

3 9.4

Behave too politely and humbly to please someone

can combine that deference with active helpful behaviour for gain

T

to toady

vsto curry favor

1 9.1

Flatter and obey someone in power to get their favor

can include similar servility but also practical helpful behaviour

S

to soft-soap

vsto curry favor

• Informal

1 7.7

To try to persuade someone by giving false praise

may combine smooth words with helpful actions to secure approval

P

to play up

vsto curry favor

• Informal

1 5.5

Try to get someone's approval by giving false praise

is similar but more likely to include helpful acts for advantage

H

to honey

vsto curry favor

• Informal

1 8.1

To speak very kindly to someone to get something from them

balances such sweetness with practical helpful acts to gain advantage

C

to court favor

vsto curry favor

1 6.8

To try to get someone's approval by praising them a lot

also uses helpful actions, not only submissive behaviour to gain approval

B

to bootlick

vsto curry favor

• Offensive

1 8.7

To praise or obey someone in power to get their support

also covers using helpful efforts, not only praise, to gain approval

H

to honey up to

vsto curry favor

• Informal

8.8

To please someone with too many compliments to get a favor

places more weight on active helpful behaviour for personal gain

A

to apple-polish

vsto curry favor

• Informal

9.0

To give praise that is not real to get a favor

often also involves offering help or service to gain advantage

L

to lick someone's boot

vsto curry favor

• Offensive

8.9

Praise or act very friendly toward a boss to get something for yourself

can be less about servility and more about offering helpful services

Antonyms

A

to alienate

123 6.7

To make someone feel alone and lose support from others

D

to displease

28 4.7

To make someone feel annoyed or unhappy

How Ingratiating

to butter up

• Informal

13 4.2

to curry favor

• US

10 7.4

to ingratiate

10 8.2

to flatter

100 3.6

to praise

331 1.0

Surface Forms

Morphology

Etymology