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3. shine up to

shine up to

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shine up to someone

Fig. to try to gain someone's favor by being extra nice. John is a nice guy, except that he's always trying to shine up to the professor. Mary never tries to shine up to the manager.

See also: shine, up

shine up to

Try to impress or please, be attentive to, as in George was always shining up to the teacher, or Her father warned her about men shining up to her for her money. [Colloquial; late 1800s]

See also: shine, up

shine up to

Informal

To try to impress or please: shined up to the boss, hoping to get a raise.

See also: shine, up