INDEX:
1. behaving in a friendly way
2. usually enjoying talking to people and being with them
3. friendly relationships/conversations
4. friendly places/situations
5. too friendly in a way that is unpleasant
6. to be too friendly to someone in authority
RELATED WORDS
opposite
↑ UNFRIENDLY
nice person : ↑ NICE
see also
↑ FRIEND
↑ POLITE
↑ KIND
↑ RELATIONSHIP
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1. behaving in a friendly way
▷ friendly /ˈfrendli/ [adjective]
easy to talk to, and ready to behave like a friend towards people you have not met before :
▪ Ella was very friendly, and I liked her immediately.
▪ The hotel staff were very friendly and helpful.
friendly to/towards
▪ One surprise was how friendly everyone was to us on our travels.
friendliness [uncountable noun]
▪ Everywhere he was treated with kindness and friendliness.
▷ nice /naɪs/ [adjective]
someone who is nice is friendly and very easy to like :
▪ We met some really nice people at the party - friends of my sister.
nice to
▪ All Brad’s friends were very nice to me, but I was too shy to join in their chat.
▷ easy to get on with British /easy to get along with American /ˌiːzi tə get əˈlɒŋ wɪðǁ-əˈlɔːŋ-, ˌiːzi tə get ˈɒn wɪð/ [adjective phrase]
friendly, relaxed, and not the type of person who causes unnecessary problems or arguments :
▪ What’s he like? Is he easy to get on with?
▪ As a director, I’m always looking for good actors, but it’s a bonus if they are easy to get along with too.
▷ easygoing /ˌiːziˈgəʊɪŋ◂/ [adjective]
friendly and relaxed, and not easily annoyed or upset :
▪ I feel lucky to have such an easygoing and affectionate child.
▪ Stein’s easygoing manner is only one of the reasons he will be missed when he retires.
▷ warm /wɔːʳm/ [adjective usually before noun]
someone who is warm is very friendly in a sincere way, and seems to really care about other people :
▪ She’s a warm, caring person, and she’ll make a wonderful nurse.
▪ He welcomed us with a warm smile.
warmly [adverb]
▪ The Secretary General was warmly welcomed at the White House yesterday.
▷ approachable /əˈprəʊtʃəb ə l/ [adjective]
someone who is approachable is friendly and easy to talk to, even though they are in a more important position than you :
▪ If you have any problems, the head teacher is very approachable
▪ Olivia has a reputation as an easygoing, approachable executive who always has lunch with her employees.
▷ welcoming /ˈwelkəmɪŋ/ [adjective]
behaving in a way that shows you are glad to have other people visiting your home or your country, and doing things to make them feel relaxed and happy there :
▪ He stood at the door with a welcoming smile.
▪ Restaurant and hotel prices in the area are reasonable, and the townspeople are welcoming.
▷ hospitable /ˈhɒspɪtəb ə l, hɒˈspɪ-ǁhɑːˈspɪ-, ˈhɑːspɪ-/ [adjective]
someone who is hospitable is friendly and generous to you when you visit their home or their country :
▪ Most of the people I met in Laos were very hospitable and kind.
hospitality /ˌhɒspɪˈtæləti, ˌhɒspəˈtælətiǁˌhɑː-/ [uncountable noun]
someone’s friendly, generous behaviour towards you when you visit their home or their country :
▪ He was known for his hospitality and generosity.
▷ affable /ˈæfəb ə l/ [adjective] formal
someone who is affable, especially a man, is polite, friendly, and cheerful :
▪ She married an affable, middle-aged businessman.
▪ Brown was affable and sympathetic, but also firm and decisive in dealing with the problems presented to him.
▷ amiable /ˈeɪmiəb ə l/ [adjective] formal
friendly and pleasant, and not easily annoyed or worried :
▪ The waiter was an amiable young man.
▪ Cohen is soft-spoken and amiable.
▷ genial /ˈdʒiːniəl/ [adjective] formal
friendly, often laughing and making jokes, and enjoyable to be with :
▪ Dr Saito has a warm, genial manner.
▪ Our hosts were genial and friendly, and our stay was a very pleasant one.
2. usually enjoying talking to people and being with them
▷ sociable /ˈsəʊʃəb ə l/ [adjective]
▪ She’s a friendly, sociable woman.
▪ Some research has shown that people without brothers and sisters tend to be less sociable.
▷ outgoing /ˌaʊtˈgəʊɪŋ◂/ [adjective]
someone who is outgoing likes to meet and talk to new people and is not nervous in social situations :
▪ She’s become more outgoing since she went to college.
▪ Marshall’s skills and her outgoing personality made her very effective in her public relations jobs.
▷ extrovert British /extroverted American /ˈekstrəvəʳt, ˈekstrəvəʳtə̇d/ [adjective]
lively and confident and enjoying being with a lot of people :
▪ Lisa is very extrovert, but her sister is a little shy.
▪ Brass players have a reputation as the most extroverted musicians - they’re the party animals of the orchestra.
extrovert /ˈekstrəvəʳt/ [countable noun]
someone who is extrovert: :
▪ The work in sales appeals to the extrovert in me.
3. friendly relationships/conversations
▷ friendly /ˈfrendli/ [adjective]
▪ Friendly relations between the two countries have continued through this difficult time.
on friendly terms
in a friendly way
▪ Fontaine said that he was leaving the company on very friendly terms.
▷ amicable /ˈæmɪkəb ə l, ˈæməkəb ə l/ [adjective] formal
an amicable arrangement or solution is one when people who do not agree with each other are able to solve their problems in a reasonably friendly way :
▪ The meeting between the two leaders was very amicable.
amicable arrangement/divorce/solution etc
▪ Simons sent his attorney to meet with the ranchers in hopes that they could still come to an amicable settlement.
▷ cordial /ˈkɔːʳdiəlǁ-dʒ ə l/ [adjective]
a cordial relationship between two people or groups is one in which people are polite and friendly to each other although they are not close friends :
▪ Britain and Portugal have had cordial relations for more than four centuries.
▪ Donnely was polite and cordial, but she refused to sign the contract.
cordially [adverb]
▪ He greeted them cordially.
4. friendly places/situations
▷ friendly /ˈfrendli/ [adjective]
▪ The restaurant had good food and a friendly atmosphere.
▪ You’re lucky to work in such a friendly office.
▷ welcoming /ˈwelkəmɪŋ/ [adjective]
a place, room etc that is welcoming makes you feel relaxed and happy to be there :
▪ A bunch of fresh flowers on the table always looks welcoming.
▪ a bright, clean, welcoming room
▷ convivial /kənˈvɪviəl/ [adjective] formal
a convivial event or social situation is one in which people are friendly to each other and enjoy themselves :
▪ The mood was relaxed and convivial.
▪ Pubs are good places for a drink and some convivial conversation.
5. too friendly in a way that is unpleasant
▷ familiar /fəˈmɪliəʳ/ [adjective]
talking to someone as if you know them very well although in fact you do not, especially in a way that people think is unpleasant or offensive :
▪ I don’t like it when men I’ve just met are too familiar.
▪ She came up to me and started talking in such a familiar way that I thought I must have met her before.
▷ smarmy /ˈsmɑːʳmi/ [adjective] informal
someone who is smarmy behaves in a very friendly way but seems completely insincere :
▪ He’s been criticized for his smarmy behavior when interviewing celebrities.
▪ a slick, smarmy public relations officer
▪ He denies calling the Prime Minister ‘smarmy’.
▷ over-friendly /ˌəʊvəʳ ˈfrendli◂/ [adjective] British
if someone is over-friendly, they are too friendly in a way that is unpleasant, for example standing or sitting too close to you :
▪ A man in the pub was a little over-friendly, so I left early.
▷ obsequious /əbˈsiːkwiəs/ [adjective] formal
someone who is obsequious always tries too hard to be friendly and helpful, and always agrees with what other people say, in a way that people think is very annoying :
▪ The waiter was polite and efficient, but not obsequious.
▪ All this obsequious praise for his actions is enough to make most normal people sick.
▷ slimy /ˈslaɪmi/ [adjective] informal
someone who is slimy is too friendly and praises people too much in a way that is clearly dishonest and makes you think they are just trying to get an advantage for themselves :
▪ What a slimy, horrible man.
▪ They had the usual slimy politician on TV talking about ‘the innate good sense of the voters’.
6. to be too friendly to someone in authority
▷ suck up to somebody informal also creep up to somebody British informal also kiss up to somebody American informal /ˌsʌk ˈʌp tə somebody, ˌkriːp ˈʌp tə somebody, ˌkɪs ˈʌp tə somebody/ [transitive phrasal verb]
to say or do a lot of nice things to someone in authority, in order to make them like you and help you in some way - use this to show disapproval :
▪ Sucking up to the teacher doesn’t mean you’ll pass your exams.
▪ I’m not going to kiss up to anyone for favors.
▪ He was creeping up to the interviewer, trying to look good.
▷ grovel /ˈgrɒv ə lǁˈgrɑː-, ˈgrʌ-/ [intransitive verb]
to behave in a very respectful, obedient way towards someone, because you want them to help you or forgive you :
▪ If a police officer stops your car, be respectful to him, but don’t grovel.
grovel for
▪ The department is having to grovel for money again.
grovel to
British
▪ I grovelled to my parents and promised I wouldn’t do it again.
grovelling British /groveling American [adjective]
▪ He received a grovelling apology.
▷ brown-nose /ˈbraʊn nəʊz/ [intransitive/transitive verb] informal
to be very nice to someone in authority and help them do things in order to try to make them like you and help you - use this to show disapproval :
▪ Kids don’t want other kids to think they’re brown-nosing, so they don’t tell teachers when they’ve enjoyed a class.
▷ creep /kriːp/ [countable noun] British
someone who pretends to really respect or admire someone, but only in order to make the other person like them or do something for them :
▪ She’s such a creep at work.
▪ Will’s the class creep, and the teachers don’t notice.