deep affection of parents for their children; literally means a cow licking its calf fondly

To perform the most degrading acts of servile flattery or sycophancy to gain favor from powerful people; based on an ancient story about doctors being rewarded with chariots for cleaning a king's abscesses or hemorrhoids with their mouths.

to toady; to flatter obsequiously; used in local dialects

literally an old ox licking its calf; describes a parent doting on or showing deep affection for their children

(literary) an old cow licking its calf, used to describe the deep love that parents have for their children

the affection of a parent for their child; literal sense of an old cow licking its calf

the love of a cow licking her calf; parental love

parental love or affection, literally the intimacy of a cow licking her calf

to gradually erode or encroach upon something; often used to describe how a country's territory is nibbled away until the nation finally falls