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obsequious

[ uhb-see-kwee-uhs ]
/ əbˈsi kwi əs /
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See synonyms for: obsequious / obsequiously / obsequiousness on Thesaurus.com
adjective
characterized by or showing servile obedience and excessive eagerness to please; fawning; deferential: an obsequious bow;obsequious servants.
obedient; dutiful.

OTHER WORDS FOR obsequious

1 sycophantic, flattering; cringing, submissive.
See synonyms for obsequious on Thesaurus.com
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Origin of obsequious

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Latin obsequiōsus, equivalent to obsequi(um) “compliance,” derivative of obsequ(ī) “to comply with” (equivalent to ob- + sequī “to follow”) + -ium + -ōsus; see ob-, -ium, -ous

synonym study for obsequious

1. See servile.

OTHER WORDS FROM obsequious

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH obsequious

obsequies, obsequious
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

Words related to obsequious

abject, beggarly, brown-nosing, complacent, compliable, compliant, cringing, crouching, deferential, enslaved, fawning, flattering, ingratiating, kowtowing, menial, obeisant, oily, parasitic, parasitical, prostrate

How to use obsequious in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for obsequious

obsequious
/ (əbˈsiːkwɪəs) /
adjective
obedient or attentive in an ingratiating or servile manner
rare submissive or compliant

Derived forms of obsequious

obsequiously, adverbobsequiousness, noun

Word Origin for obsequious

C15: from Latin obsequiōsus compliant, from obsequium compliance, from obsequi to follow, from ob- to + sequi to follow
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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