suck up
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Verb (Phrasal Verb):
- To try to gain favor or approval from someone, especially a superior, through excessive flattery, subservience, or obsequious behavior. This usage carries a strong negative connotation of insincerity and self-serving motives.
- To absorb or draw in a liquid or, metaphorically, an abstract quality. This is a more literal, physical meaning, often used informally.
Examples of Usage
- Verb (Meaning: To flatter obsequiously):
- He constantly sucks up to the manager, hoping for a promotion.
- Stop sucking up! The teacher knows you didn't do the homework.
- Verb (Meaning: To absorb):
- The paper towel will suck up the spilled milk quickly.
- The new student seemed to suck up all the confidence in the room.
Advanced Usage
- "to suck up to someone": This is the most common structure when using the phrasal verb to mean flattery. The preposition "to" is essential here.
- She's always sucking up to the senior partners at the firm.
- The phrasal verb can be separated by a noun or pronoun object.
- He's trying to suck all the praise up for himself. (Separated, meaning: to absorb/claim)
- She sucks it up to her boss every day. (Separated, meaning: to flatter)
Variants and Related Words
- Suck-up (noun): A person who habitually tries to gain favor through flattery.
- Don't be such a suck-up; just do your work well.
- Absorb (verb): A more formal synonym for the physical "take in" meaning.
- Ingratiate (verb): A more formal synonym for the "gain favor" meaning, as in "to ingratiate oneself."
Synonyms
- Brown-nose (verb, slang): To behave obsequiously towards someone in authority.
- Kowtow (verb): To act in an excessively subservient manner.
- Flatter (verb): To praise excessively, but without the same strong implication of subservience.
- Soak up (phrasal verb): A close synonym for the "absorb" meaning.
Related Phrasal Verbs
- Play up to: To flatter or try to please someone, similar to "suck up to."
- He's just playing up to the client to get the contract.
- Butter up: To flatter someone, often with the aim of getting them to do something.
- She buttered up her dad before asking to borrow the car.
Related Idioms
- Suck it up: An informal idiom meaning to accept an unpleasant but unavoidable situation without complaining.
- I know you're tired, but we have to finish this project. Just suck it up for a few more hours.(Note: This is a distinct idiom with a different meaning from "suck up to someone.")
Verb
- try to gain favor by cringing or flattering
- He is always kowtowing to his boss
- ingratiate oneself to; often with insincere behavior
- She is playing up to the chairman
- take in, also metaphorically
- The sponge absorbs water well
- She drew strength from the minister's words