First recorded in 1910–15
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Rosenior admitted when he was hired that he needed to hit the ground running to silence the critics who claimed that he would be a yes-man for the Chelsea hierarchy.
From Barron's ● Jan. 25, 2026
It is a potential pitfall for Rosenior to be wary of given that, as a recruit from Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital's other club Strasbourg, he could easily be labelled a yes-man.
From BBC ● Jan. 10, 2026
It appeared that Lurie and Roseman chose a yes-man coach and a placeholder quarterback in preparation for a long, dreary rebuilding cycle.
From New York Times ● Dec. 29, 2021
As Screech, Diamond embodied the ultimate yes-man sidekick who executed preppy Zack Morris’ most harebrained ideas.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 1, 2021
How many times had I gone there to be his sidekick and his yes-man, to tell him what he wanted to hear?
From "Schooled" by Gordon Korman
"If I was a yes man, I would have been gone long ago. We have just got that honesty in the relationship between us that we can be blunt and straight-talking when needed."
From BBC ● Mar. 25, 2024
“You can’t be a yes man to yourself,” he said, “or you’re never going to get better.”
From Washington Times ● Aug. 24, 2023
And Barney was just a yes man, constantly on the wrong side of Fred's bullying.
From Salon ● Aug. 5, 2022
This is a guy that will be the ultimate yes man to the front office and LeBron James.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 28, 2022
Yes, yes, man, but go back a little.
From The Lions of the Lord A Tale of the Old West by Wilson, Harry Leon
A crib of yes-men limits how big he can grow.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2025
Alice Perkins, who chaired the Post Office at the time and faced a second day of questioning by lawyers on Thursday, denied that Ms Vennells had surrounded herself with "yes-men and yes-women".
From BBC ● Jun. 6, 2024
But Logan has a short memory for the favors he owes, and he doesn’t respect obsequious yes-men.
From New York Times ● Mar. 24, 2023
Likewise, many rich people surround themselves with yes-men, perhaps unintentionally.
From Salon ● Jul. 23, 2021
Fred Dunmore is accustomed to dealing with a lot of yes-men at the plant; you shouldn't have any trouble shouting him down.
From Murder in the Gunroom by Piper, H. Beam
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
