soft soap
Save This Word!
noun
Informal. persuasive talk; flattery: to use soft soap to get one's way.
the semifluid soap produced when potassium hydroxide is used in the saponification of a fat or an oil.
QUIZZES
QUIZ YOURSELF ON PARENTHESES AND BRACKETS APLENTY!
Set some time apart to test your bracket symbol knowledge, and see if you can keep your parentheses, squares, curlies, and angles all straight!
Question 1 of 7
Let’s start with some etymology: What are the origins of the typographical word “bracket”?
First appeared around 1750, and is related to the French word “braguette” for the name of codpiece armor.
First appeared in 1610, based on the French word “baguette” for the long loaf of bread.
First appeared in 1555, and is related to the French word “raquette” for a netted bat.
TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT Origin of soft soap
First recorded in 1625–35
Words nearby soft soap
soft-shoe, soft shoulder, soft sign, soft skill, soft skills, soft soap, soft-soaper, soft solder, soft-spoken, soft spot, soft steel
Definition for soft soap (2 of 2)
soft-soap
[ sawft-sohp, soft- ]
/ ˈsɔftˈsoʊp, ˈsɒft- /
verb (used with object)
Informal. to cajole; flatter.
to apply soft soap to.
verb (used without object)
to use soft soap in washing.
Origin of soft-soap
First recorded in 1820–30
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
Example sentences from the Web for soft soap
British Dictionary definitions for soft soap
soft soap
noun
med another name for green soap
informal flattering, persuasive, or cajoling talk
verb soft-soap
informal to use such talk on (a person)
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
Cultural definitions for soft soap
soft soap
Flattery: “Mary asked the boss to stop giving her a lot of soft soap about her performance and to start leveling with her like any other employee.”
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Idioms and Phrases with soft soap
soft soap
Flattery, cajolery, as in She's only six but she's learned how to get her way with soft soap. This colloquial expression alludes to liquid soap, likening its slippery quality to insincere flattery. Its figurative use was first recorded in 1830.
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.