Meanings
comparative more ingratiating · superlative most ingratiating
- Which ingratiates; which attempts to bring oneself into the favour of another, often with flattery or insincerity; smarmy; unctuous; oily.
an ingratiating smile.
1 more example
Mr. Alfred O'Shea, a tenorizing youth from Australia, sang several times at Queen's Hall, and may congratulate himself on being one of the 'catches' of the season. He sang airs from Italian and French operas, and also a number of Irish ditties—naturally, with a name like that and such an ingratiating McCormackian voice.
1922 August 1, “London Concerts”, in The Musical Times
- gerundparticiplepresentpresent participle and gerund of ingratiate
Synonyms & antonyms
adjectiveWhich ingratiates; which attempts to bring oneself into the favour of another, often with flattery or insincerity; smarmy; unctuous; oily.
More synonyms by meaning
adjectivecapable of winning favor
adjectivecalculated to please or gain favor
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Translations
French hypocrite, flagorneur
- hypocriteTranslations
- flagorneurTranslations
German schmeichlerisch
- schmeichlerischTranslations
Cite this entry
ingratiating. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ingratiating
“ingratiating.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ingratiating. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “ingratiating,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ingratiating.
Source: ingratiating on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.