flat ‧ ter /ˈflætə $ -ər/ BrE AmE verb [transitive]
[ Date: 1100-1200 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: flater 'to move the tongue against, flatter' ]
1 . to praise someone in order to please them or get something from them, even though you do not mean it:
Perry would always flatter Mrs. Mitchell by praising her cooking.
2 . to make someone look as attractive as they can SYN suit :
That dress really flatters your figure.
3 . to make something look or seem more important or better than it is:
Lewis’s novel doesn’t flatter Midwestern attitudes and morals.
4 . flatter yourself if you flatter yourself that something is true about your abilities or achievements, you make yourself believe it is true, although it is not
flatter yourself that
She flatters herself that she could have been a model.
—flatterer noun [countable]
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THESAURUS
▪ praise to say that you admire and approve of someone or something, especially publicly:
The film was praised by the critics when it first came out.
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The report praises staff in both schools.
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It’s important to praise children.
▪ congratulate to tell someone that you think it is good that they have achieved something:
I congratulated him on his success.
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The government should be congratulated for what they have achieved.
▪ compliment to say to someone that you like how they look, or you like something they have done:
She complimented me on my new hairstyle.
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He complimented my cooking.
▪ flatter to praise someone in order to please them or get something from them, even though you do not mean it:
He had persuaded her to buy it by flattering her and being charming.
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You’re just flattering me!
▪ rave about something ( also enthuse about something formal ) to talk about something you enjoy or admire in an excited way, and say that it is very good. Rave is rather informal, whereas enthuse is much more formal and is used mainly in written English:
Everyone is raving about the movie.
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She enthused about the joys of motherhood.
▪ applaud formal to publicly praise a decision, action, idea etc:
Business leaders applauded the decision.
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A spokeperson applauded the way the festival had been run.
▪ commend formal to praise someone or something, especially officially:
After the battle, Andrew Jackson commended him for ‘his courage and fidelity’.
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The officers should be commended for their prompt action.
▪ hail somebody/something as something especially written to describe someone or something in a way that shows you have a very good opinion of them, especially in newspapers, on television reports etc:
The book was hailed as a masterpiece.
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Journalists and music writers hailed the band as ‘the next big thing’.
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He is being hailed as the new James Dean.