ingratiate vs schmooze up

Both "ingratiate" and "schmooze up" are correct phrases, but they have different levels of formality and connotations. "Ingratiate" is a more formal term meaning to bring oneself into favor with someone through flattery or trying to please them. On the other hand, "schmooze up" is a more informal and colloquial term meaning to engage in friendly or persuasive conversation to gain favor or advantage.

Last updated: March 23, 2024 • 1446 views

ingratiate

This is a correct and commonly used term in English, especially in formal contexts.

To ingratiate oneself means to try to make oneself more attractive or agreeable to someone, often through flattery or pleasing actions.

Examples:

He tried to ingratiate himself with the boss by complimenting her work.
She attempted to ingratiate herself with her new colleagues by bringing them coffee.
It's not necessary to ingratiate yourself with others to be successful.

Show examples from the web [+]

It might behoove you to ingratiate yourself to your new neighbors.
To ingratiate himself with Tulse Luper he anticipated showing a little-known film called A Walk Through H or The Reincarnation of an Ornithologist.
Now, we must invade people's homes and ingratiate ourselves with them.
And Milton, smooth and nice, is trying to ingratiate himself with Kevin's mother.
Their money is being used to enable the EU to ingratiate itself into these countries like a spider trying to catch more flies.
Our own governments send out confusing signals when they are seen to deal and compromise with terrorists and even sacrifice the reputation of our security forces and individual officers in order to ingratiate themselves with organisations such as the Provisional IRA in the United Kingdom.
His sudden determination to ingratiate himself here.
His death was designed to ingratiate his spies with you.
He then manages to ingratiate himself somehow... gets inside their homes, studies the layout...
So you can ingratiate yourself in said cases and find new ways to interact with Beckett.
But your senior officers might have thought that you were trying to ingratiate yourself.
I see you've managed to ingratiate yourself with the hired help.
Try rather to ingratiate yourself in my father's favour.
Tell the lady that she is sadly mistaken if she hopes to ingratiate herself with me.
Please tell his Lordship I have no desire or need to ingratiate myself.
This attempt to ingratiate is also found in internal policies, where a multitude of grants are made with no follow-up.
I wonder... if your friends know the acts that you are capable of, how you were able to ingratiate yourself to HYDRA.
'Step three, ingratiate yourself with a joke or some humorous device.'
He's too eager to please, always trying to ingratiate himself to me.
You didn't exactly ingratiate yourself to him either!

Alternatives:

curry favor
brown-nose
suck up to
flatter
cater to

schmooze up

This is a correct term, but it is more informal and colloquial compared to "ingratiate."

To schmooze up means to engage in friendly or persuasive conversation with someone in order to gain favor or advantage, often in a casual setting.