sycophancy
AmericanEtymology
Origin of sycophancy
First recorded in 1615–25; from Latin sȳcophantia “trickery,” from Greek sȳkophantía “dishonest prosecution,” from sȳkophánt(ēs) “informer” ( see sycophant) + -ia -y 3
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Completely eliminating sycophancy is hard, said Myra Cheng, lead author of the Stanford study and a Stanford Ph.D. candidate in computer science.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 27, 2026
AI’s sycophancy reinforces human confirmation bias, but users can employ tactics to counteract this tendency.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 21, 2026
Bezos has no love for reporting but lots for sycophancy.
From Slate ● Feb. 5, 2026
The phenomenon is called sycophancy: Models effectively tell users what they want to hear.
From Salon ● Jan. 3, 2026
He had emphatically satirised the sycophancy which estimated literary works by the rank of the author: What woful stuff this madrigal would be In some starved hackney sonneteer, or me!
From The Works of Alexander Pope, Volume 1 New Edition by Alexander Pope
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