flatter
(verb)
past tense: flattered
LISTEN
"Good job!" "Oh, you flatter me."
Flatter means ‘to please by compliments or attention.’
- Celeste was flattered that Jill invited her to her wedding.
Or ‘to praise insincerely or excessively.’
- The salesman flattered his customer's excellent taste before showing her the expensive necklace.
Flatter can also mean ‘to feel satisfaction with yourself, sometimes mistakenly.’
- Michael flattered himself that his speech had gone well.
Common uses
Flattery will get you nowhere: A person will not be influenced just because someone flatters him.
Did you know?
Flatter has another meaning. It is also the comparative form of flat. Example: “The terrain is flatter in the Midwest region of the US than in the West.”
Related words
flattering: enhances someone’s appearance. Example: “Your new hair style is very flattering.”
In pop culture
Do you know the story of The Fox and the Crow? Watch how the fox flatters the crow. Listen for the moral of the story. “Never trust a flatterer.”
There are other meanings of flatter.
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