Brown Nose, to

Also:

Brown Noser (brown-noser)
Brownnosing (brown nosing, brown-nosing)

Meaning of Idiom ‘Brown Nose’

To brown nose is to obsequiously and shamelessly try to gain someone’s favor by being sycophantic and affecting a subservient attitude, being overly agreeable, flattering, etc. ¹,²

One who engages in brownnosing is called a brown-noser.

Synonyms or related words for brownnosing are obsequious, ingratiating, sycophantic, and unctuous.

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Related Idioms

Curry Favor, to
Suck Up (to someone)
Kiss Ass or Kiss Butt, to

Examples Of Use

“Franklin is such a brown-noser! He follows the boss around like a puppy.”

“I knew a lot of brown-nosers in the military. They didn’t get far.”

“If you think you can brown nose your way to the top in this company, you are going to be disappointed.”

“The boss seems to hate me. I wonder if its because I’m the only one not brownnosing him all the time.”

Origin

This idiom is related to the idioms “to kiss ass” (or kiss butt), with the same meaning. To kiss arse, the British version of kiss ass was first recorded in 1705.

Brown nose, which is probably of military origin, alludes to butt-kissing when the butt being kissed is in need of cleaning. Originating in the 1930’s, this version of the idiom is even more vulgar than its antecedents while managing to seem less offensive. Today it is not usually considered very vulgar. ³,⁴

The similar idiom kiss up to is a combination of kiss ass and suck up to.

25 Body Parts Idioms | Idioms Online Video

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More Idioms Starting with B

• Be in Someone’s Hair
• Beat a Dead Horse
• Be a 10, to
• Buck For Something
• Bottomless Pit

More Body Part Idioms

• Go Belly Up
• Stand On Someone’s Shoulders
• In One’s Face
• Give Someone the Cold Shoulder
• Know Something Like the Back Of One’s Hand
• Out of the Corner of One’s Eye

More Brown Idioms

More Color Idioms

• Local Color
• With Flying Colors
• Show Your True Colors, to
• Horse of a Different Color

More Nose Idioms

• Take a Nosedive
• Thumb Your Nose At Someone Meaning
• Look Down Your Nose
• Pay Through the Nose
• Rub Someone’s Nose In It

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References

1. Pare, May. Body Idioms and More: For Learners of English. United States?: Mayuree Pare, 2005.
2. Ammer, Christine. American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013.
3. Pare, May. Body Idioms and More: For Learners of English. United States?: Mayuree Pare, 2005.
4. Ammer, Christine. American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013.