booby-trap 1 of 2

as in to attack
to place hidden explosive devices in or under booby-trapped the field bordering the army's camp

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booby trap

2 of 2

noun

1
as in mine
a usually concealed explosive device designed to go off when disturbed luckily, the bomb squad didn't find any booby traps

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2
as in hitch
a danger or difficulty that is hidden or not easily recognized he noticed the booby trap in the interviewer's question just a little too late

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of booby-trap
Noun
Jun-ho’s drone picks up on a door on the ground that turns out to be a booby trap that kills one person and injures another. Jennifer Zhan, Vulture, 26 Dec. 2024 And that does not even consider the likelihood of a beacon which is also a booby trap. David Hambling, Forbes, 29 Nov. 2024 From guns to booby traps, Dutch leads the charge to take down the gnarly, terrifying looking alien. Lauren Brown West-Rosenthal, Parents, 28 Nov. 2024 Wary of booby traps and with evening closing in, the troops did not enter the building until the next day. James MacKenzie, Reuters, 18 Oct. 2024 See All Example Sentences for booby-trap
Recent Examples of Synonyms for booby-trap
Verb
  • May 8 India fires attack drones into Pakistan, killing at least two civilians, the Pakistani military says.
    Riazat Butt, Chicago Tribune, 10 May 2025
  • Trump acknowledged Democrats would attack Republicans for a tax hike, and that raising taxes was blamed for former President George H.W. Bush’s reelection loss in 1992.
    Bart Jansen, USA Today, 10 May 2025
Noun
  • The Idaho Cobalt Project is a model: a defunct mine site brought back into operation to extract minerals while also helping clean up legacy pollution.
    Bill Frist, Forbes.com, 13 May 2025
  • The blueprints released throughout China As in California, the Chinese had mines for digging up ores containing rare earths.
    Mark Dent, HubSpot, 9 May 2025
Noun
  • Her four-hour surgery went off without a hitch, and her recovery did as well.
    Hedy Phillips, People.com, 20 May 2025
  • New piece Karl-Anthony Towns replaced Randle without a hitch, and Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart bring that Villanova toughness and skill to both sides of the ball.
    Jack Magruder, Forbes.com, 20 May 2025
Verb
  • When Russia began bombing Kyiv in 2022, the walls were blown away, exposing the old newspapers.
    Chadd Scott, Forbes.com, 19 May 2025
  • On May 2, Israel bombed an area near the presidential palace in Damascus.
    Bill Hutchinson, ABC News, 17 May 2025
Noun
  • Many land mines are still visible to the naked eye, but others are more sophisticated and harder to detect.
    Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 21 Apr. 2025
  • Many land mines are visible to the naked eye, but others are more sophisticated and harder to detect.
    Ghaith Alsayed and Sally Abou Aljoud, Los Angeles Times, 21 Apr. 2025
Verb
  • The bus flipped over and caught fire; the children were trapped inside, and six died, along with one of their teachers.
    The Atlantic, The Atlantic, 15 May 2025
  • This atmospheric river had been hovering over the Southeast for days, trapped by a strong high pressure system, before inching its way north.
    John Bacon, USA Today, 15 May 2025
Noun
  • There was also a high risk of severe weather issued the afternoon of Sunday, May 18 for parts of Oklahoma and Kansas.
    Julia Gomez, USA Today, 19 May 2025
  • Defense attorney Grace Forbes argued that Brown is not a flight risk and should be released from custody, according to CNN.
    Jennifer Zhan, Vulture, 18 May 2025
Noun
  • Both cars should be significantly cheaper than the Jaguar, though Trump’s tariffs have created a snag with the Zeekr.
    Alan Ohnsman, Forbes.com, 5 May 2025
  • Adorable footage from Jaylon Beasley shows the moment his three-year-old son caught the fish all by himself after feeling a snag on the line.
    Ashley J. DiMella, FOXNews.com, 2 May 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Booby-trap.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/booby-trap. Accessed 23 May. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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