The word's journey begins in ancient Greece. The original Greek term sykophantēs was a compound of sykon (fig) and phainein (to show). Its literal meaning, "one who shows the fig," is obscure but is often interpreted as referring to an informer who denounced those illegally exporting figs or, more broadly, a malicious accuser. Over time in Latin and later in English, the sense shifted from a slanderer to a servile flatterer, someone who uses insincere praise to curry favor. The modern adjective "sycophantic" thus retains the core idea of servile, self-serving behavior, now characterized by fawning flattery rather than malicious accusation.

Structure: sycophant (flatterer) + ic (adjective-forming suffix) sycophant: From Latin sycophanta, from Greek sykophantēs, meaning "informer, slanderer," originally from sykon (fig) + phainein (to show). ic: A suffix forming adjectives from nouns or other adjectives, of Greek and Latin origin, meaning "of, pertaining to, or characteristic of."