Fig. a flatterer. Doesn't that wimpy apple-polisher know how stupid he looks?Everybody at my office seems to be an apple-polisher but me.
polish the apple
Try to win favor through flattery, as in It may help your standing with the boss if you polish the apple. This expression gave rise to the phrase apple polishing. The idiom alludes to the practice of schoolchildren bringing their teacher the gift of a bright, shiny apple. [c. 1920]