adulation

If you've ever been to a pop concert filled with screaming fans you've probably been exposed to adulation — praise so over-the-top it's almost embarrassing.

  • Pronunciation: / ,ædʒə'leʃən/
  • English description: servile flattery; exaggerated and hypocritical praise
  • Synonyms: flattery
  • Chinese Translation: 奉承(feng4 cheng2)
  • Spanish Translation: la adulación
  • ORIGIN: The Latin word adulatio means "flattery." It's made up of the rootsad ("to") and ulos ("tail"), and if you're thinking of a dog wagging its tail to and fro to get a treat from its owner, you're on the right track. As anyone who's seen a crazed fan drooling over a celebrity knows, adulation is one of the more doglike of human behaviors.

EXAMPLE SENTENCE:

  • Cold and aloof, he was at times irritable when the roar of adulation went silent–he craved notice.
  • There would be enough titles, adulation, cash, fulfillment.

*New word description, story and part of "EXAMPLE SENTENCE" are cited in Vocabulary