Definition of TEMPTED

Choose the Right Synonym for tempt

lure, entice, inveigle, decoy, tempt, seduce mean to lead astray from one's true course. lure implies a drawing into danger, evil, or difficulty through attracting and deceiving. lured naive investors with get-rich-quick schemes entice suggests drawing by artful or adroit means. advertising designed to entice new customers inveigle implies enticing by cajoling or flattering. fund-raisers inveigling wealthy alumni decoy implies a luring into entrapment by artifice. attempting to decoy the enemy into an ambush tempt implies the presenting of an attraction so strong that it overcomes the restraints of conscience or better judgment. tempted by the offer of money seduce implies a leading astray by persuasion or false promises. seduced by assurances of assistance

Examples of tempt in a Sentence

that chocolate dessert sure tempts me, but I should stick with my diet refusing to lay in enough food for the long winter tempts the dangers of starvation

Recent Examples on the Web Finding out that your child is in academic trouble can tempt you to jump to solutions. — New York Times, "How to Help a Teen Out of a Homework Hole," 26 Feb. 2021 The power to order pinpoint strikes and killings, often cloaked in secrecy, enables a president to act with minimal public scrutiny, and can tempt a president to substitute a few small, dramatic exploits for a more sustained strategy. — Mark Bowden, The Atlantic, "How Special Ops Became the Solution to Everything," 12 Mar. 2021 Last month, Fansided's Jim Koch wrote about how Smith-Schuster could tempt the Cardinals. — Jeremy Cluff, The Arizona Republic, "JuJu Smith-Schuster free agency: Arizona Cardinals perfect fit for Pittsburgh Steelers WR," 6 Mar. 2021 Chocolate chip doesn’t tempt me, but any cookie with nuts, especially almonds, does. — David Tanis, New York Times, "Chef’s Choice: A Dreamy Menu, Inspired by Italy," 26 Feb. 2021 As soaring bitcoin and cryptocurrency prices tempt users to the burgeoning market, share prices of many crypto businesses have risen too, with some far outpacing recent cryptocurrency rallies. — Billy Bambrough, Forbes, "As Bitcoin Suddenly Surges Over $50,000, The Price Of These Cryptocurrency Stocks Is Soaring," 4 Mar. 2021 That’s a particularly troubling possibility as falling temperatures increasingly push people indoors and upcoming holidays tempt people to celebrate with family and friends. — Luke Money, Los Angeles Times, "L.A. County declares new coronavirus surge, sparking increased alarms," 9 Nov. 2020 Steven Gerrard, the Rangers manager, will not tempt fate. — New York Times, "Old Rivals, New Ideas and Why Some Clubs Are Reluctant to Try," 29 Jan. 2021 Some owners are investing now in connecting water, gas and electricity to the outdoors to later tempt home shoppers who want a gas heater and kitchen overlooking the yard. — oregonlive, "On the market: Portland area homes for sale with a smart outdoor living space," 30 Jan. 2021

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'tempt.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

History and Etymology for tempt

Middle English tempten "to test, incite to sin, attempt," borrowed from Anglo-French tempter, temter, tenter, going back to Latin temptāre, tentāre "to feel, test, examine, attempt, make an assault on, attack" (Late Latin, "to incite to sin"), perhaps frequentative derivative from an Indo-European verbal base *temp- "stretch, extend" (hence, "grope for, feel") — more at tempo

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