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• flattery
  flattery

  noun

  the act of flattering.
• Flattery
  Flattery

  noun

  Cape, a cape in NW Washington, on the Olympic Peninsula, at the entrance to Juan de Fuca Strait.

flattery

¹ American  

[flat-uh-ree] / ˈflæt ə ri /

noun

• flatteries
  plural

1. the act of flattering.

2. a flattering compliment or speech; excessive, insincere praise.

   Synonyms:

   pandering, sycophancy

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Flattery ² American  

[flat-ree] / ˈflæt ri /

noun

1. Cape, a cape in NW Washington, on the Olympic Peninsula, at the entrance to Juan de Fuca Strait.

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flattery British  

/ ˈflætərɪ /

noun

1. the act of flattering

2. excessive or insincere praise

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• flatteries
  plural

Etymology

Origin of flattery

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English flaterie, from Middle French, equivalent to flat(er) “to flatter” + -erie noun suffix; see flatter ¹, -ery

Explanation

Flattery is excessive praise. If you're hoping to borrow your brother's car, be careful not to overdo it when you compliment his haircut, new shoes, and singing voice — he knows flattery when he sees it. As opposed to real praise, flattery is insincere and almost always has an ulterior motive. The Old English root word of flatter is flater, which originally meant "to stroke with the hand or caress." When you stroke someone's ego to get what you want, you're using flattery. If the person you are wildly complimenting tells you that flattery will get you nowhere, you know it's time to back off.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

flattery Flattery flatteries

With a mix of flattery and blind optimism, Seoul succeeded in setting up a first-ever meeting between a sitting US president and Kim Jong Un in 2018.

From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2026

Over time, this mix of flattery and projected expertise does real damage, says Turkle, a clinical psychologist and professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026

Graham was, rhetorically, almost pathetically in Trump’s thrall, heaping flattery onto a president who’d once posted Graham’s phone number online for mass harassment.

From Slate ● Jul. 14, 2026

When Faye’s beloved college professor dies suddenly and she’s asked to speak at a memorial ceremony, nostalgia and flattery make her drop everything and hightail it back to the leafy northeastern college town.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 13, 2026

Miss Tynmore, while pleased by the flattery, nevertheless told Katie what was what.

From "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" by Betty Smith

Flattery in state media underscored the dictator’s need to establish cult-of-personality supremacy as a smokescreen for his nation’s woes.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 13, 2026

Mr McKeown's partner Vicky Flattery added: "John literally wouldn't be here today without everything Demi did."

From BBC ● Dec. 23, 2023

Good Samaritans on Thursday rescued one of two mariners about 70 miles northwest of Cape Flattery after they went missing earlier this month, according to the U.S.

From Seattle Times ● Oct. 27, 2023

Flattery from a president, though I wouldn’t know, is likely addictive.

From Washington Post ● Aug. 27, 2021

Flattery never hurts with her, as long as it’s based on truth.

From "The Seven Wonders of Sassafras Springs" by Betty G. Birney

But I learned as little about Herman from these flatteries as I did from Einhorn’s gushing cliches.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 11, 2021

How frail a thing is the worldly man's friendship, hanging on flatteries and community of interest!

From Checkmate by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

There are flatteries and intrusions beside which censure is sweet and obloquy would be welcome.

From Critical Studies by Ouida

We approve neither of the flatteries of one side, nor the insultings of the other.

From An Answer to a Question that Nobody thinks of, viz., But what if the Queen should Die? by Daniel Defoe

He took no note of his daughter's little triumphs, the admiration that she excited, or the flatteries that greeted her.

From Barrington Volume I (of II) by Charles James Lever