butter up

British  

verb

1. (tr, adverb) to flatter

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butter up Idioms  

1. Excessively praise or flatter someone, usually to gain a favor. For example, If you butter up Dad, he'll let you borrow the car. This term transfers the oily, unctuous quality of butter to lavish praise. [c. 1700]

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Example Sentences

One of his senior advisors told me this last August when I arrived in Brussels, and I wondered whether it was as a cholesterol-enriched ploy to butter up the new British arrival.

From BBC

The president later told vaccinators to “fire away” and buttered up one recipient by claiming his biceps were bigger than his own thighs.

From Washington Times

“I love the state of Iowa,” Mr. Trump said, by way of buttering up the home of the butterballs.

From New York Times

The story ends in a comedic turn, when we realize that she is being buttered up by a ghost recruiter.

From New York Times

Some are questioning whether he buttered up to governments like China in return for massive donations to the organization.

From Fox News