Spot the Frippet: suckhole.

In these times, when debate is conducted at ear-splitting volume and we live in a cave so full of echoes that only the simplest message seems to penetrate, suckholes are something for which we need to be vigilant.

The word suckhole is Australian slang. It describes someone who uses flattery to win favour from people in power.

(And imitation is, obviously, the sincerest form of flattery.)

Once you consider this word, and also consider where exactly every kind of power lies, then a lot of the mysteries of the modern world are mysteries no more.

And, once identified, the word suckhole can act as a much-needed relief.

Spot the Frippet: suckhole. The Old English form of the word suck was sūcan. The Latin word sūgere means to suck, too. The word is related to our words soak (which has a history to do with cooking). 

The Old English form of hole was hol.