verb
- present participle of butter; spreading butter on something
- present participle of butter; flattering someone excessively to gain favor
Usage: informal; usually in phrase ‘buttering up’
Examples
- She was buttering her toast when the phone rang.
- He spent the morning buttering slices of bread for sandwiches.
- The chef was buttering the pan before adding the eggs.
- Stop buttering up the teacher just to get a better grade.
- He’s always buttering up his boss before asking for time off.
- She was buttering the corn on the cob at the barbecue.