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back-patting

American  
[bak-pat-ing] / ˈbækˌpæt ɪŋ /

noun

  1. an act or instance of offering praise or congratulation.

    The winners indulged in a certain amount of mutual back-patting.


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Nevertheless, she got a lot of back-patting and huzzahs from her followers.

From Seattle Times Sep. 16, 2022

The script’s self-important, back-patting, “Women can be warriors too!” attitude around that plot point matches very oddly with its frankness everywhere else about how Hamilton and Davis handle their fights.

From The Verge Nov. 1, 2019

Fans of The Beatles and Kanye West were fooled by Twitter jokesters who reacted to the rapper’s surprise collaboration with Paul McCartney by back-patting his so-called discovery of the British megastar.

From Washington Times Jan. 5, 2015

But the limits of Ronan’s body refuse to offer Rapp the back-patting moments of typical modern parenting. Walked before age 1!

From Salon May 7, 2013

With the men, Victor is jovial and back-patting, asking twice for their names, as if he means to pass on a compliment or a complaint.

From "How the García Girls Lost Their Accents" by Julia Alvarez

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