brown-nose
verb /ˈbraʊn nəʊz/
/ˈbraʊn nəʊz/
[intransitive, transitive] (informal, disapproving)Verb Forms
| present simple I / you / we / they brown-nose | /ˈbraʊn nəʊz/ /ˈbraʊn nəʊz/ |
| he / she / it brown-noses | /ˈbraʊn nəʊzɪz/ /ˈbraʊn nəʊzɪz/ |
| past simple brown-nosed | /ˈbraʊn nəʊzd/ /ˈbraʊn nəʊzd/ |
| past participle brown-nosed | /ˈbraʊn nəʊzd/ /ˈbraʊn nəʊzd/ |
| -ing form brown-nosing | /ˈbraʊn nəʊzɪŋ/ /ˈbraʊn nəʊzɪŋ/ |
- to treat somebody in authority with special respect in order to make them approve of you or treat you better
- He got that promotion by brown-nosing.
- brown-nose somebody She spends her time brown-nosing those in power.