bootlick

American  

[boot-lik] / ˈbutˌlɪk /

verb (used with object)

1. to seek the favor or goodwill of in a servile, degraded way; toady to.

   Synonyms:

   apple-polish, fawn, flatter

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verb (used without object)

1. to be a toady.

   Synonyms:

   apple-polish, fawn, flatter

bootlick British  

/ ˈbuːtˌlɪk /

verb

1. informal to seek favour by servile or ingratiating behaviour towards (someone, esp someone in authority); toady

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Other Word Forms

• bootlicker
  noun

Etymology

Origin of bootlick

An Americanism dating back to 1835–45; boot ¹ + lick

Example Sentences

"Prescott would, if he were a tenth part of the bootlick that you represent him to be," replied Stubbs.

From Dick Prescotts's Fourth Year at West Point Ready to Drop the Gray for Shoulder Straps by Hancock, H. Irving (Harrie Irving)

And you've got to play politics, bootlick your boss—all that.

From O. Henry Memorial Award Prize Stories of 1920 by Various

Turned down for that fellow Prescott—-that shifty dodger and cheap bootlick!

From Dick Prescott's Third Year at West Point Standing Firm for Flag and Honor by Hancock, H. Irving (Harrie Irving)

"I don't stand for a bootlick," replied Cadet Stubbs.

From Dick Prescotts's Fourth Year at West Point Ready to Drop the Gray for Shoulder Straps by Hancock, H. Irving (Harrie Irving)

At Yale, and other colleges, a tutor or any other officer who informs against the students, or acts as a spy upon their conduct, is also called a bootlick.

From A Collection of College Words and Customs by Hall, Benjamin Homer