adulation

[aj-uh-ley-shuhn]

noun

1. excessive devotion to someone; servile flattery.

adulation

/ ˌædjʊˈleɪʃən /

noun

1. obsequious flattery or praise; extreme admiration

Other Word Forms

• adulatory adjective
• self-adulation noun
• self-adulatory adjective
• unadulating adjective
• unadulatory adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of adulation¹

Middle English < Middle French < Latin adūlātiōn- (stem of adūlātiō ) servile flattery, fawning, equivalent to adūlāt ( us ), past participle of adūlārī, -āre to fawn upon (of dogs), apparently a nominal derivative, with ad- ad-, of an otherwise unattested base + -iōn- -ion

Example Sentences

O'Neill, who since his return has been going around calling everybody "young man", is basking in the adulation of the Celtic fans.

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After about 36 hours of near-unanimous adulation for Allen and “West End Girl,” with everyone from your older sister to Gwyneth Paltrow posting praise for the album, the tides started to turn.

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He'll see this one as the ultimate, a gift from the Celtic Gods, a return to the place where he experienced such glory and adulation.

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To this day, Cortés and Moctezuma remain figures of both adulation and disdain, recalled in operas, plays, books and films and TV series.

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Gyokeres was pushed forward by his team-mates to take the adulation of the crowd and perform his trademark celebration on his own in a show of togetherness from the Arsenal squad.

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Related Words

• applause 
• commendation