temptress

noun

tempt·​ress ˈtem(p)-trəs How to pronounce temptress (audio)
: a woman who tempts or entices

Examples of temptress in a Sentence

Greta Garbo, one of the most famous temptresses ever to appear on screen, died in 1990.
Recent Examples on the Web Indeed, the movie’s sexiest scene finds our temptress entering Kei’s room and wordlessly taking nude photos of herself on his bed. Natalia Winkelman, IndieWire, 22 Sep. 2024 On television in the 1960s, Rowlands played the deaf-mute wife of a detective in the NBC series 87th Precinct and was the temptress Adrienne Van Leyden on ABC’s Peyton Place. Mike Barnes, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019 The ambitious temptress is remade and in the process defanged. Lyz Lenz, Rolling Stone, 16 July 2024 This squinty vantage on Southern California, as a temptress who dashes hopes, also was evident in his script for Tequila Sunrise (1988), which starred Mel Gibson as a retired drug dealer, Kurt Russell as a cop and Michelle Pfeiffer as the femme fatale. Mike Barnes, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019 See all Example Sentences for temptress 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'temptress.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

tempter + -ess

First Known Use

1594, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of temptress was in 1594

Dictionary Entries Near temptress

Cite this Entry

“Temptress.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/temptress. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

temptress

noun
tempt·​ress ˈtem(p)-trəs How to pronounce temptress (audio)
: a woman who tempts

More from Merriam-Webster on temptress

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!