bait

verb

ˈbāt 

baited; baiting; baits

transitive verb

1

a

: to persecute or exasperate with unjust, malicious, or persistent attacks

bait minority groups

: to try to make angry with criticism or insults

baiting a politician during a debate

b

: tease

2

a

: to harass (a chained animal, such as a bear) with dogs usually for sport

b

: to attack by biting and tearing

dogs baiting a fox

3

a

: to furnish with bait (see bait entry 2)

bait a fishing line

bait a trap

b

: entice, lure

baiting prospective buyers

4

: to give food and drink to (an animal) especially on the road

intransitive verb

archaic : to stop for food and rest when traveling

baiter noun

Synonyms of bait

• taunt
• tease
• mock

Choose the Right Synonym for bait

bait, badger, heckle, hector, chivy, hound mean to harass by efforts to break down.

bait implies wanton cruelty or delight in persecuting a helpless victim.

baited the chained dog

badger implies pestering so as to drive a person to confusion or frenzy.

badgered her father for a car

heckle implies persistent annoying or belligerent interruptions of a speaker.

drunks heckled the stand-up comic

hector carries an implication of bullying and domineering.

football players hectored by their coach

chivy suggests persecution by teasing or nagging.

chivied the new student mercilessly

hound implies unrelenting pursuit and harassing.

hounded by creditors

Examples of bait in a Sentence

baiting hooks with live worms

The interviewer kept baiting the politician by asking him whether he was lying.

Recent Examples on the Web

But most bait users stick to tried-and-true oldies — minnows and worms, crawdads and crickets. —Byron W. Dalrymple, Outdoor Life, 4 June 2026

His minutes were limited against Cleveland, and Brown often used him as, for lack of a better word, bait to trick the Cavs into fouling him quickly and putting the Knicks into the bonus. —Joe Vardon, New York Times, 2 June 2026

There are baited Japanese beetle traps, but research at the University of Kentucky shows that the traps attract many more beetles than are actually caught. —Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 30 May 2026

That includes fishing guides and bait shop owners. —John Lauritsen, CBS News, 8 May 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Old Norse beita; akin to Old English bǣtan to bait, bītan to bite — more at bite

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Phrases Containing bait

• bait and switch
• fish or cut bait
• red-bait

Rhymes for bait

• ate
• bate
• cate
• crate
• date
• eight
• fait
• fate
• fete
• frate
• freight
• gait

Kids Definition

bait

1 of 2 verb

ˈbāt 

1

: to torment by repeated attacks

2

: to torment (an animal) with dogs

3

: to put bait on or in

bait a hook

baiter noun

bait

2 of 2 noun

1

: something (as food) used to attract animals to a hook or into a trap

2

: a poisonous material put where it will be eaten by and kill harmful or undesirable animals

3

: lure sense 1, temptation

Etymology

Middle English baiten "to tease, torment," from an early Norse word originally meaning "to cause to bite"

Middle English bait "a lure," from two early Norse words, one meaning "pasture" and the other meaning "food"