ingratiation

American  

[in-grey-shee-ey-shuhn] / ɪnˌgreɪ ʃiˈeɪ ʃən /

noun

1. the act or process of establishing oneself in the favor or good graces of someone, especially by deliberate effort in order to influence or manipulate.

   I struggle to free my store staff—and myself—from this constant dignity-sapping, servile ingratiation with customers.

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Etymology

Origin of ingratiation

ingrati(ate) ( def. ) + -ation ( def. )

Example Sentences

In black leather pants, he dances across the stage, flirting with the crowd with as much ingratiation as the camera fawningly displays toward him.

From New York Times • Jun. 30, 2023

The real giveaway, though, is the compulsive ingratiation.

From New York Times • Jun. 26, 2023

What’s clear these days is that this edifice of ingratiation is shaky.

From New York Times • Oct. 25, 2022

Some two-thirds of job applicants use deceptive ingratiation, and over half admit to slight image creation, according to research by Dr. Bourdage and Dr. Roulin.

From New York Times • Feb. 17, 2022

And it quickly became evident that the whole afternoon’s object was the adequate ingratiation and stimulation of these dregs of frontier life.

From The Golden Woman A Story of the Montana Hills by Cullum, Ridgwell