fawning

American  

[faw-ning] / ˈfɔ nɪŋ /

adjective

1. seeking favor by flattery or a servile way of behaving.

   The billionaire’s donation earned him a fawning front-page news story in the Globe and Mail.

   This detailed and favorable book review is not a fawning endorsement, as the reviewer takes the author to task on several points.

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noun

1. the act or practice of seeking favor by flattery or a servile way of behaving.

   On the second-last night of the cruise, we witnessed the fawning of the ship’s wait staff as they jockeyed for a healthy tip.

Other Word Forms

• fawningness
  noun
• fawningly
  adverb

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Etymology

Origin of fawning

First recorded in 1325–75; fawn ² + -ing ² ( def. ) for the adjective; fawn ² + -ing ¹ ( def. ) for the noun

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Explanation

Use fawning to describe someone who's over the top in the flattery department. Like a fawning admirer who just won't stop complimenting your looks, showering you with gifts and otherwise kissing the ground you walk on. From the Old English fægnian, meaning “rejoice, exult, be glad,” fawning can be both an adjective and a noun form of the verb fawn. Fawning people are often trying to win favor with the person being flattered, and it sometimes comes off as sucking up. So do everyone a favor and don't try to boost your poor grades by fawning over your professor’s every word.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

fawning

We young women standing in front of her, fawning and asking for a photo, were the future of her work.

From Slate ● Sep. 3, 2026

He attaches clippings of or links to fawning newspaper profiles and columns, but not to stories about what was happening in the civilian population of his country as it went through a crisis.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026

That love is palpable in “Drifting Toward Twilight” and its accompanying documentary, which sees Saar fawning over the orange tint of sloughed bark and the mystical qualities of garden scraps.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 27, 2026

What a perfectly prescient metaphor for how these fawning chatbots use up all of the stores of our compassion.

From Salon ● Jun. 28, 2026

He was more fawning and would-be friendly; but Sam surprised some strange looks in his eyes at times, especially towards Frodo; and he went back more and more into his old manner of speaking.

From "The Two Towers" by J. R. R. Tolkien

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Related Words

• flattering

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