greasing the wheels
Smoothing the way
Greasing the wheels means making a process run more smoothly, often by removing obstacles or providing incentives.
The metaphor comes from lubricating machinery to reduce friction.
It can describe legitimate facilitation—A good introduction greases the wheels—or suggest bribery: He greased the wheels with a few hundred dollars to the inspector.
- bribingPaying for illicit favor
- lubricatingApplying friction-reducing substance
- oilingApplying slick substance
- expeditingMaking progress faster
- optimizingImproving to best effect
palm oil · streamlining · coaxing · incentivizing · smoothing · persuading · slush fund · quid pro quo · simplifying · kickbacks · negotiating · accelerating · enabling · under-the-table · pay to play · influencing · coordinating · lobbying
greasing the wheelsthrowing a wrench in the works
Deliberately disrupting planned operations
gumming up the works · throwing a spanner in the works · stonewalling · blocking · obstructing
greasing the wheelsmaking a scene
Behaving dramatically in public
drawing a line in the sand · public shaming · burning bridges
greasing the wheelsby the book
Following established procedures exactly
grease, greasing, greased, greasy, greasier, greasiest, greasiness, wheel, wheels