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adulate

[aj-uh-leyt]
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verb (used with object), ad·u·lat·ed, ad·u·lat·ing.
  1. to show excessive admiration or devotion to; flatter or admire servilely.
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Origin of adulate

First recorded in 1770–80; back formation from adulation
Related formsad·u·la·tion, nounad·u·la·tor, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for adulate

Historical Examples

  • It is true, people are permitted to adulate slavery—so they are allowed to adulate kings, where kings reign.

    Continental Monthly, Vol. II. July, 1862. No. 1.

    Various

  • She whom such songs were meant to adulate or win, frequently was the wife of the Troubadours lord.

British Dictionary definitions for adulate

adulate

verb
  1. (tr) to flatter or praise obsequiously
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Derived Formsadulator, noun

Word Origin

C17: back formation from C15 adulation, from Latin adūlāri to flatter
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for adulate

v.

1777, back-formation from adulation.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper