ensnare

verb

en·​snare in-ˈsner 

en-

ensnared; ensnaring; ensnares

transitive verb

: to take in or as if in a snare

Synonyms

• catch up
• enmesh
• immesh
• ensnarl
• entangle
• entoil
• entrap
• mesh
• net
• snare
• tangle
• trap

Choose the Right Synonym for ensnare

catch, capture, trap, snare, entrap, ensnare, bag mean to come to possess or control by or as if by seizing.

catch implies the seizing of something in motion or in flight or in hiding.

caught the dog as it ran by

capture suggests taking by overcoming resistance or difficulty.

capture an enemy stronghold

trap, snare, entrap, ensnare imply seizing by some device that holds the one caught at the mercy of the captor.

trap and snare apply more commonly to physical seizing.

trap animals

snared butterflies with a net

entrap and ensnare more often are figurative.

entrapped the witness with a trick question

a sting operation that ensnared burglars

bag implies shooting down a fleeing or distant prey.

bagged a brace of pheasants

Examples of ensnare in a Sentence

The animals got ensnared in the net.

The police successfully ensnared the burglar.

Recent Examples on the Web

The Brutality of Sugar: A New York Times investigation into the sugar-cane industry in the Indian state of Maharashtra found workers ensnared by debt and pushed into child marriages and unnecessary hysterectomies. —Mujib Mashal Atul Loke, New York Times, 1 May 2024

Ultimately, the law is looking to prevent incidents like the Mirai botnet DDoS attack in 2016, which used a short list of 62 common default usernames and passwords to scan for vulnerable devices and ensnared nearly 300,000 devices. —Joe Hindy, PCMAG, 30 Apr. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1576, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

ensnare

verb

en·​snare in-ˈsna(ə)r 

-ˈsne(ə)r

: snare entry 2 sense 1, entrap