grease up
To put grease or oil on something so it moves easily, or to bribe someone to get what you want.
Meanings
To coat something or someone with grease or oil, often to reduce friction or prepare for an activity.
"Make sure you grease up the baking tin before pouring in the batter."
To bribe someone or use money to facilitate a process illegally or improperly.
"They had to grease up a few local officials to get the building permits approved."
The literal sense is common in mechanical, culinary, and sporting contexts (e.g. greasing a baking tin, a wrestler greasing up). The figurative bribery sense is informal and slightly dated. 'Grease someone's palm' is the more common fixed expression for bribery.
Commonly used with
Forms
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