Look up sycophant in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Toady redirects here. See also Todi.

Sycophant (Gr. συκοφάντης), in ancient Greece was the counterpart of the Roman delator, a public informer. Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Wiktionary (from wiki and dictionary) is a multilingual, Web-based project to create a free content dictionary, available in over 150 languages. ... A person who flatters or defers to others for self-serving reasons; a sycophant. ... Panorama of Todi. ... Greek ( IPA: or IPA: — Hellenic) is an Indo-European language with a documented history of 3,500 years, the longest of any single language in that language family. ... Delator, in Roman history, properly one who gave notice (deferre) to the treasury officials of moneys that had become due to the imperial fisc. ... An Informant is someone who provides information to law enforcement agencies. ...

According to ancient authorities, the word (derived by them from συκο suko, "fig", and φανης fanēs, "to show") meant one who informed against another for exporting figs (which was forbidden by law) or for stealing the fruit of the sacred fig-trees, whether in time of famine or on any other occasion.^{[citation needed]} The Oxford English Dictionary, however, states that this explanation, though common, "cannot be substantiated", and suggests that it may refer instead to the insulting gesture of "making a fig" or to an obscene alternate meaning for "fig". Species About 800, including: Ficus altissima Ficus americana Ficus aurea Ficus benghalensis- Indian Banyan Ficus benjamina- Weeping Fig Ficus broadwayi Ficus carica- Common Fig Ficus citrifolia Ficus coronata Ficus drupacea Ficus elastica Ficus godeffroyi Ficus grenadensis Ficus hartii Ficus lyrata Ficus macbrideii Ficus macrophylla- Moreton Bay Fig Ficus microcarpa- Chinese... A famine is a social and economic crisis that is commonly accompanied by widespread malnutrition, starvation, epidemic and increased mortality. ... The Oxford English Dictionary print set The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) is a dictionary published by the Oxford University Press (OUP), and is generally regarded as the most comprehensive and scholarly dictionary of the English language. ... It has been suggested that Type of gesture be merged into this article or section. ...

Another old explanation was that fines and taxes were at one time paid in figs, wine and oil, and those who collected such payments in kind were often called sycophants because they publicly handed them in.^{[citation needed]}

In modern English, the term has come to mean one who seeks to please people in positions of authority or influence in order to gain power themselves, usually at the cost of pride, principles, and peer respect. However, in modern Greek, and also in modern German, the term has retained its ancient classical meaning, and is still used to describe a slanderer or a calumniator. Pride refers to a strong sense of self-respect, a refusal to be humiliated as well as joy in the accomplishments of oneself or a person, group, or object that one identifies with. ... A principle (not principal) is something, usually a rule or norm, that is part of the basis for something else. ... This article is about the attitude of acknowledgement. ...

A popular synonym for the English term is "toady" or "toadying", derived from the term "toad eater".^{[citation needed]} Families At least 9, see article. ...

In Obert Skye's Leven Thumps series of children's books, "sycophant" also refers to a race of small furry creatures whose job is to aid people who have entered Foo. Leven Thumps is a popular childrens fantasy series by writer Obert Skye. ...

See also

• Placebo (origins of technical term)

The technical term placebo is precisely applied in the specialized medical domains of pharmacology, nosology, and aetiology to denote the pharmacologically inert, dummy simulator of an active drug that serves as a scientific control in clinical trials designed to determine the clinical efficacy of that particular drug. ...

External links

• Toady (definition)
• Toady (compared to a parasite)
• Toady (pronunciation)