brownie point
Credit or praise for good work or a good deed, often for the express purpose of currying favor.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“I helped my boss today to earn some brownie points.”
“I bring my neighbor's mail to her door to earn brownie points.”
“He washed his partner's car on Saturday morning just to earn a few brownie points for the weekend.”
“The students stayed after class to help the teacher organize the library, hoping to get some brownie points before the final exam.”
“You should probably offer to cook dinner tonight if you want to win some brownie points after forgetting your anniversary yesterday.”
“By volunteering for the most difficult project in the department, she hoped to earn enough brownie points to secure a promotion by the end of the year.”
first recorded 20th c. disputed origin
Unknown, but possibly from brownnose, and often associated with the points that Girl Guides or Girl Scouts at the Brownie level (ages six through eight) receive for doing specific tasks that when accumulated earn them badges (a sign of recognition) to wear on their Brownie Uniform. First use appears c. 1944 in the The Daily Item (Sunbury).
- 01
all points of the compass
Every direction; everywhere.
- 02
beside the point
Irrelevant, moot.
- 03
boiling point
The state of being heated, with high aggression.
- 04
get the point
To understand; to interpret correctly.
- 05
get to the point
To state (something) directly; as opposed to in a long-winded way.
- 06
labour the point
To continue to discuss or explain something excessively or repetitively to the point that it may bore or annoy the listener.
- 07
make a point
To argue or promote an idea.
- 08
not to put too fine a point on it
Used to apologize for a possibly impolite statement one is making; to put it bluntly; to express it in plain terms.
Last updated August 10, 2026