ingratiate
Win someone over
To ingratiate yourself is to work your way into someone's favor, often through flattery or excessive agreeableness: He tried to ingratiate himself with the boss by laughing at every joke.
The word carries a whiff of calculation or insincerity—genuine charm doesn't need to ingratiate.
Young deer, or flatter
- kowtowExcessive deference shown physically
- grovelHumble oneself servilely
- toadyObsequious flatterer seeking favor
- truckleDefer obsequiously
brownnose · bootlick · genuflect · bow · scrape · apple-polish · curry favor · kiss up
Praise to please
- complimentWords expressing approval
- sweet-talkFlatter to persuade
- blandishmentFlattering words to persuade
- adulationExtravagant, servile praise
fawning · buttering up · praise · cajole · wheedle · honey · soft-soap · schmooze
Obsequious flatterer seeking favor
- flattererOne dispensing insincere praise
- bootlickerServile flatterer of superiors
- yes-manUncritical agreeable subordinate
- brownnoserServile flatterer seeking favor
apple-polisher · fawner · lackey · minion · lickspittle · flunkey · groveler · hanger-on
Make beloved
- win overGain another's support
- disarmRemove capacity to harm
- captivateHold attention irresistibly
- beguileCharm into deception
woo · court · enchant · attract · appeal · befriend · cozy up · get in with
Coldly self-serving in strategy
- cunningSly, scheming cleverness
- schemingCrafty and calculating
- strategicDeliberately planned for advantage
- opportunisticExploiting circumstances for gain
self-serving · ulterior · insidious · duplicitous · two-faced · disingenuous · artful · wily
fawn
Young deer, or flatter
- kowtowExcessive deference shown physically
- grovelHumble oneself servilely
- toadyObsequious flatterer seeking favor
truckle · brownnose · bootlick · genuflect · bow · scrape · apple-polish · curry favor · kiss up · suck up
flatter
Praise to please
- complimentWords expressing approval
- sweet-talkFlatter to persuade
- blandishmentFlattering words to persuade
adulation · fawning · buttering up · praise · cajole · wheedle · honey · soft-soap · schmooze · gush
toady
Obsequious flatterer seeking favor
- flattererOne dispensing insincere praise
- bootlickerServile flatterer of superiors
- yes-manUncritical agreeable subordinate
brownnoser · apple-polisher · fawner · lackey · minion · lickspittle · flunkey · groveler · hanger-on · courtier
endear
Make beloved
beguile · woo · court · enchant · attract · appeal · befriend · cozy up · get in with · cultivate
calculating
Coldly self-serving in strategy
- cunningSly, scheming cleverness
- schemingCrafty and calculating
- strategicDeliberately planned for advantage
opportunistic · self-serving · ulterior · insidious · duplicitous · two-faced · disingenuous · artful · wily · crafty
- flatteryflatter, praise, flattery, compliment, compliments
- persuasion tacticscharm, butter up, flattery, flatter, coax
- sycophantssycophant, sycophants, toady, toadies, bootlicker
- conformityconformity, conforming, conform, conformist, conformism
- lay it on thickexaggerate, overstate, embellish, ham it up, overact
ingratiatealienate
Cause emotional distance
estrange · repel · antagonize · offend · disgust