toad-eater
- Noun:
- A sycophant or flatterer: A "toad-eater" is a person who behaves obsequiously toward someone powerful or wealthy in order to gain favor or advantage; a fawning parasite.
- A dependent hanger-on: It also refers to a person who relies on another for support, often by providing servile or ingratiating assistance.
- (Sycophants who flattered him for personal gain.)
- (A servile dependent who flatters for security.)
"to play the toad-eater": to act in a fawning or obsequious manner.
- He played the toad-eater at the meeting, laughing at every joke the director made. (He behaved sycophantically.)
"toad-eating" (n): the act of fawning or flattery.
- His constant toad-eating made him unpopular with his colleagues. (His sycophantic behavior.)
Toady (n): a shortened, more common form of "toad-eater," meaning a sycophant.
- The manager's toady always brought him coffee and compliments. (A flatterer.)
Toady (v): to behave in a sycophantic manner.
- He toadied to the professor to get a better grade. (He flattered obsequiously.)
Toadyism (n): the practice or behavior of a toady.
- Toadyism is common in hierarchical workplaces. (Sycophantic behavior.)
- Sycophant: a person who flatters powerful people to gain advantage.
- Flatterer: someone who praises excessively and insincerely.
- Lickspittle: a servile, fawning person (archaic).
- Parasite: a person who lives off others without giving in return.
To eat out of someone's hand: to be completely submissive or fawning toward someone.
- The toad-eater ate out of the CEO's hand, agreeing with every proposal. (He was completely servile.)
To butter someone up: to flatter someone excessively to gain favor.
- The toad-eater buttered up the boss before asking for a raise. (He flattered obsequiously.)
The term "toad-eater" originated in the 17th century, referring to a charlatan's assistant who would pretend to eat a toad (believed to be poisonous) to demonstrate the efficacy of the charlatan's "antidote." The assistant's willingness to engage in a degrading act for the charlatan's benefit led to the modern meaning of a sycophantic flatterer.