obsequious

C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities

US /əbˈsikwiəs/ UK /əbˈsiːkwiəs/ See IPA manual

adj

Meanings

1

adj
excessively obedient or attentive in a servile, fawning way

The obsequious waiter agreed with every word the diners said.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · excessively obedient or... servile fawning sycophantic subservientgrovelingunctuous ingratiating

Opposites

domineering assertive imperious arrogant

Word family

Forms obsequiouslyobsequiousness

Derived forms obsequiouslyobsequiousness

Related forms obsequysequence consequent

Etymology

From Latin obsequiosus ('compliant, obedient'), from obsequium ('compliance'), from obsequi ('to comply with, follow'), from ob- plus sequi ('to follow').

obsequiosus Latin sequi Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities Word Formation & Derivatives

# obsequious

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** adj
**IPA (US):** əbˈsikwiəs
**IPA (UK):** əbˈsiːkwiəs

## Meanings
1. excessively obedient or attentive in a servile, fawning way

## Examples
- The obsequious waiter agreed with every word the diners said.

## Synonyms
- servile
- fawning
- sycophantic
- subservient
- groveling
- unctuous
- ingratiating

## Antonyms
- domineering
- assertive
- imperious
- arrogant

## Derived Forms
- obsequiously
- obsequiousness

## Related Forms
- obsequy
- sequence
- consequent

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: obsequiosus
- Root: sequi

## Etymology
From Latin obsequiosus ('compliant, obedient'), from obsequium ('compliance'), from obsequi ('to comply with, follow'), from ob- plus sequi ('to follow').

## AI Etymology
Obsequious comes from Latin obsequiosus ('compliant, obedient'), from obsequium ('compliance'), from obsequi ('to comply with, follow'), from ob- plus sequi ('to follow'). The etymological trail includes Latin obsequiosus and Latin sequi. As an adjective, obsequious means excessively obedient or attentive in a servile, fawning way. The same family is visible in derived forms such as obsequiously and obsequiousness and related forms such as obsequy, sequence, and consequent.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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