bootlicky

English

Alternative forms

  • boot-licky

Etymology

From bootlick +‎ -y.

Adjective

bootlicky (comparative bootlickier, superlative bootlickiest)

  1. (informal) Prone to bootlicking; obsequious; servile.
    • 1991 February 8, “Sen. Simpson And Peter Arnett”, in The Washington Post‎[1]:
      If Peter Arnett had been anywhere near as bootlicky and obsequious with Saddam Hussein as Alan Simpson was in a visit to the Iraqi dictator last April, we could understand why the CNN correspondent was being assaulted for his interviews and coverage.
    • 2012, David M. Jessup, Mariano's Crossing‎[2], page 134:
      Getting scolded like a child was hard to take, especially in front of her. But he couldn’t blame Pa after what happened yesterday. So he gave Pa a nod that he hoped wasn’t too bootlicky and turned Old Dun toward the Crossing.
    • 2024, Diana Rubino, Mrs. Aaron Burr, I'm Eliza To You‎[3], unnumbered page:
      He gave me a blow low enough to look gentlemanly, not bootlicky.
    • For more quotations using this term, see Citations:bootlicky.
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