bootlicker

American  

[boot-lik-er] / ˈbutˌlɪk ər /

noun

1. someone who seeks favor or goodwill in a servile, degraded way; toady.

   He comes across as a facile bootlicker, someone who would do anything like a lapdog to please somebody in the chain of command.

---

Etymology

Origin of bootlicker

boot ¹ ( def. ) + lick ( def. ) + -er ¹ ( def. )

Example Sentences

That caught Mr. Lee’s ear: “The suggestion that I’m beholden to either party, that I’ve been a bootlicker for either party, is folly,” he protested.

From New York Times • Oct. 17, 2022

His name gave us the English word "quisling": it means a lackey, a traitor, a bootlicker.

From BBC • Aug. 14, 2021

I am not a democrat and I am not a bootlicker.

From Time Magazine Archive

Even the stinker who has no ambition but to duck work can recognize a deserving man, and will burn if that man is bypassed in favor of a bootlicker or some other lightweight.

From The Armed Forces Officer Department of the Army Pamphlet 600-2 by United States. Dept. of Defense

Related Words

• adherent
• admirer
• advocate
• backer
• believer
• client
• devotee
• disciple
• fan
• member
• participant
• patron
• supporter
• worshiper