SYNONYMS AND RELATED EXPRESSIONS
obsequious
adjective
Excessively eager to please through flattery and deference.
Local English device voice, when available. This is not a recorded dictionary pronunciation.
Excessively deferential
Closest synonyms
Related words and expressions
These extend or explain the idea and may require a different sentence structure.
Usage distinction
Return to topObsequious behavior goes beyond ordinary courtesy and suggests excessive eagerness to please someone influential.
CHECK THE MEANING IN CONTEXT
See obsequious in use
The obsequious assistant agreed with every suggestion before hearing it fully.
At a gallery planning meeting, Daria noticed an obsequious greeting in which an assistant repeatedly praised a donor's ordinary suggestions as brilliant.
Compare an alternative with the original word in each passage. Shared meanings do not make every pair interchangeable.
Synonym reference scope and sources
The groups distinguish the senses selected for this study entry. Closest synonyms and broader related expressions have separate labels. The listed sources support lexical selection; not every phrase is a direct quotation from a source.
How the synonym reference was prepared / WordNet 3.0 license