truckle

/ˈtrʌkəl/

Other forms: truckled; truckles

A truckle is a trundle, a bed that tucks neatly underneath a higher bed. It's also a verb meaning to figuratively slide beneath, or submit to, the will of a more powerful person.

If you're in thrall to a charismatic, famous, or fearsome person, you may find yourself tempted to truckle: in other words, to agree with whatever they say, yield to their opinions, and otherwise make yourself (metaphorically) smaller. The original 16th-century meaning of truckle was "small wheel," like the wheels on the bottom of a trundle — or truckle — bed. The figurative truckle, "to bend obsequiously to another person," emerged in the 1800s.

Definitions of truckle

1. noun

   a low bed to be slid under a higher bed
   synonyms: truckle bed, trundle, trundle bed

   type of:

   bed

   a piece of furniture that provides a place to sleep
2. verb

   try to gain favor by cringing or flattering
   synonyms: bootlick, fawn, kotow, kowtow, suck up, toady

   types:

   court favor, court favour, curry favor, curry favour

   seek favor by fawning or flattery

   type of:

   blandish, flatter

   praise somewhat dishonestly
3. verb

   yield to out of weakness
   type of:

   relent, soften, succumb, yield

   give in, as to influence or pressure