Definition

Verb: - To fawn upon, to toady to: To act in an excessively flattering or servile manner towards someone in a position of power or authority, typically to gain favor, advantage, or personal benefit. This term carries a strong negative connotation of insincerity and moral weakness.

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • Anh ta chỉ biết ôm chân sếp để được thăng chức. (He only knows how to toady to the boss to get a promotion.)
  • Tôi khinh những kẻ ôm chân người giàu có. (I despise those who fawn upon the wealthy.)
  • Hắn luôn ôm chân các quan chức để kiếm dự án. (He always fawns upon officials to secure projects.)

Advanced Usage

• "ôm chân bợ đỡ": This is a common, more emphatic collocation combining "ôm chân" with "bợ đỡ" (to flatter servilely), intensifying the meaning of obsequious behavior.
  • Thái độ ôm chân bợ đỡ của hắn thật đáng khinh. (His fawning, toadying attitude is truly despicable.)

Variants and Related Words

• Nịnh (verb): to flatter, to adulate. While "nịnh" is a broader term for flattery, "ôm chân" specifically implies flattery directed at someone's "feet" (i.e., status/power) with a servile attitude.
• Bợ đỡ (verb): to flatter in a servile manner, to butter up. Often used together with "ôm chân".
• Xu nịnh (verb): to sycophantically flatter. A more literary synonym.
• Kẻ ôm chân (noun phrase): a sycophant, a toady, a bootlicker.

Synonyms

• To curry favor with: To seek to gain favor through flattery or attentiveness.
• To suck up to (informal): To behave in a servile or flattering way.
• To bootlick (informal): To act obsequiously towards someone in authority.

Related Idioms

• "Lê gót" / "Theo gót": Literally "to follow at the heels". While not identical, it can imply following someone slavishly or being a devoted follower, sometimes with a negative connotation similar to "ôm chân".
  • Hắn chỉ là kẻ lê gót ông chủ. (He is just someone who slavishly follows his boss.)

verb

1. to fawn upon, to toady tọ