flunkies

variants also flunkeys
Definition of flunkiesnext
plural of flunky

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of flunkies Yasmin, Tender’s briefly installed head of communications, is the first of Whitney’s flunkies to defect. Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 16 Feb. 2026 For instance, Bolsonaro’s flunkies penetrated the government agency that handled film distribution. Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 10 Oct. 2025 The conservative dynamic duo representing the minority on the council against Wu and her progressive flunkies have repeatedly seen their proposals and bills rejected or just ignored by Council President Ruthzee Louijeune, a Wu ally. Joe Battenfeld, Boston Herald, 27 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for flunkies
Noun
  • The latter is less of a mother to Agnes than Rosa (Kira Guloien), one of the household’s many Marthas (put-upon domestic servants).
    Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 2 Apr. 2026
  • Her house is immense and kept in immaculate condition by her family’s servants (the Marthas).
    Ben Travers, IndieWire, 2 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • There are shooting options connected with Universal’s app, where selections include firing off steel spheres, fireballs and, as minions would have it, bananas.
    Dewayne Bevil, The Orlando Sentinel, 3 Apr. 2026
  • Watch for Kara's intense ocular heat ray blasts and some fancy flying while she and Lobo battle Krem and his minions off-Earth.
    Jeff Spry, Space.com, 2 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • Trump wants Americans to believe that his opponents are of this ilk, with his lackeys casting activists as domestic terrorists for merely showing up to protests.
    Gustavo Arellano, Houston Chronicle, 25 Mar. 2026
  • Trump wants Americans to believe that his opponents are of this ilk, with his lackeys casting activists as domestic terrorists for merely showing up to protests.
    Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 17 Mar. 2026
Noun
  • To start the new Mideast war, Donnie acted on his own with no resistance from his sycophants, who have no backbones.
    Voice of the People, New York Daily News, 3 Mar. 2026
  • The Republican sycophants currently in office, out of fear, won’t stand up to him.
    Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 24 Feb. 2026
Noun
  • Rarely has a president been surrounded by such an array of toadies and lickspittles, operating beyond their competence in an atmosphere of organizational chaos.
    Eliot A. Cohen, The Atlantic, 1 Apr. 2026
  • Like the most treacherous toadies from literature — Iago, Wormtongue, Tywin Lannister — Miller managed to shove aside rivals to latch onto his master’s ear and guide him toward more evil.
    Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 29 Jan. 2026
Noun
  • That is, until Krypto is poisoned by the henchmen of villain Krem of the Yellow Hills, with only three days to save him.
    Matt Grobar, Deadline, 31 Mar. 2026
  • Researchers argued that career anxiety under autocracy creates both pro-regime henchmen and anti-regime plotters.
    Rafil Kroll-Zaidi, Harpers Magazine, 24 Mar. 2026
Noun
  • Firmly in control of the nation’s massive federal apparatus, MAGA and its Republican lickspittles in Congress have thrived on chaos.
    Steven Greenhut, Oc Register, 23 Jan. 2026
Noun
  • The result of this dynamic tension of bootlickers, according to Bernhard’s narrator, is the perpetual elevation and official anointment of mediocrity.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 19 Feb. 2026
  • These are just some of the most prominent, powerful bootlickers stumbling right now on their own deceit and desperation.
    Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 26 Jan. 2026

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Flunkies.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/flunkies. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster