Complimenting and praising I know it doesn't sound very formal but I think you should take it as a compliment. The manager should pay her staff compliments more often. She paid me with a back-handed compliment and I couldn't help but complain. I was paid with a double-edged compliment even though I knew I didn't drive very well. My brother works so hard that he is a praiseworthy person. The contestants were highly praised after their performance. A considerable number of soldiers were widely praised due to the amount of effort they made to help the children. The children were praised to the skies after their Christmas performance. Fans shower praise on celebrities. The manager damn the new employee with faint praise. This band pays tribute to Queen. The choir was given a standing ovation At the meeting, the leader extolled the virtues of doing exercise in the morning. No one knew Maria, but currently she's the toast of Hollywood. The teacher patted the child on the back to show her how happy she was with his work. The performance won plaudits because it reflects how society behaves nowadays. The Minister received laudatory comments once the prisoner was sent back to jail. There is no need to lick the boss' boots. He is such a crawler! He only does it to get a discount. Smarmy employees are not well seen by the rest of the employees. Flaterry will get you nowhere!