as in to fuss
to use flattery or the doing of favors in order to win approval especially from a superior
you can try kowtowing to the boss, but he'll see right through you
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of kowtow
Amazon, and all of its attendant properties, is owned by Jeff Bezos, who has proven in recent months to have no issue kowtowing to authoritarians for the sake of his bottom line.
—
Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 20 Feb. 2025
Meanwhile, other sources have pointed to the belief that Johnson’s background in progressive organizing repels him from anything that looks like kowtowing.
—Alice Yin, Chicago Tribune, 9 Feb. 2025
So a Muslim in a hijab attacks a trans performer who identifies as a woman yet doesn’t kowtow to all the liberal pieties.
—Armond White, National Review, 5 Feb. 2025
Where the last regime kowtowed to Rodgers’ every whim, Glenn and Mougey are leaving it up to interpretation.
—Zack Rosenblatt, The Athletic, 28 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for kowtow
Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 20 Feb. 2025
Meanwhile, other sources have pointed to the belief that Johnson’s background in progressive organizing repels him from anything that looks like kowtowing.
—Alice Yin, Chicago Tribune, 9 Feb. 2025
So a Muslim in a hijab attacks a trans performer who identifies as a woman yet doesn’t kowtow to all the liberal pieties.
—Armond White, National Review, 5 Feb. 2025
Where the last regime kowtowed to Rodgers’ every whim, Glenn and Mougey are leaving it up to interpretation.
—Zack Rosenblatt, The Athletic, 28 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for kowtow
Recent Examples of Synonyms for kowtow
Verb
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Williams never fussed about it, though and his relationships with many in the organization weren’t overly affected.—
Roderick Boone,
Charlotte Observer,
14 Apr. 2025
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No crying or fussing or squirming.—
Danielle Pergament,
SELF,
10 Apr. 2025
Verb
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The only other psychological need that rivals his thirst for toadying is the pursuit of .—
Matt Robison,
MSNBC Newsweek,
31 Mar. 2025
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Hamlet’s toadying friends, the hangers-on Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, are Izzard’s own talking hands, popping up to face her like a pair of Muppets.—
Sara Holdren,
Vulture,
11 Feb. 2024
Verb
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Pay attention for signs of distress: panting, drooling, a high heart rate, dry nose, lethargy, or even vomiting, staggering or seizures.—
Kate Bradshaw,
The Mercury News,
3 Mar. 2025
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The most-common ones include vomiting; diarrhea; lethargy; loss of appetite; drooling; tremors or seizures; difficulty breathing; and pale gums.—
Ross Rosenfeld,
Newsweek,
26 Feb. 2025
Verb
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Unless Trump’s art of the deal is all about truckling to Putin.—
Maureen Dowd,
The Mercury News,
4 Mar. 2025
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Garbarino enjoyed his time with the Southern river rats and mountain folk, and their refusal to truckle to authority delights him to this day.—
David Samuels,
Town & Country,
18 Oct. 2013
Verb
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Anonymous tips can be submitted at ManateeCrimestoppers.com.—
Michael Moore Jr.,
Miami Herald,
20 Apr. 2025
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In one of the more shocking upsets in UFC title fight history, Pena submitted Nunes in the second round, ending the Brazilian’s title reign.—
Trent Reinsmith,
Forbes.com,
20 Apr. 2025
Verb
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Posey will be given a lot of rope, befitting a franchise icon who received almost nothing but fawning praise from the media and fan base since exploding onto the scene.—
Jerry McDonald,
Mercury News,
3 Apr. 2025
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Eve’s sis Maggie (Julianna Margulies), a novelist who dips into her personal life liberally for inspiration, bickers a lot with her judgmental but fawning husband Nick (Campbell Scott), a novelist bitten by the writer’s block.—
Randy Myers,
The Mercury News,
20 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Kowtow.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/kowtow. Accessed 28 Apr. 2025.
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