as in tempted
to lead away from a usual or proper course by offering some pleasure or advantage
tacky souvenir shops to which first-time tourists had been decoyed into spending their hard-earned money
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Recent Examples of decoyed
Dowdle busted loose for a first down with 40 seconds to play after Young decoyed putting him in pass protection, and those 19 yards put the Panthers in position to kick a field goal after they’d won the coin flip and maneuvered to get the wind at the end.
—
Luke Decock, Charlotte Observer, 2 Nov. 2025
Luke Decock, Charlotte Observer, 2 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for decoyed
Verb
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So its understandable that you might be tempted to let mom handle your daughters' education and support during menstruation.—
Christian Dashiell,
Parents,
28 Jan. 2026
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Would he be tempted to go in that direction and also get shiny objects?—
Georg Szalai,
HollywoodReporter,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Especially after Brexit, Milan has become the destination of choice for millionaires lured by the 2017 change in Italian tax policies, which features a 7% flat tax for retirees and new residents on foreign income.—
Scott M. Reid,
Oc Register,
30 Jan. 2026
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The Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, the majority stakeholder of LIV Golf, quickly lured away some of the former top stars on the PGA Tour by offering them massive deals, including Koepka, Jon Rahm, Bryson DeChambeau, Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson and Cameron Smith.—
Mary Whitfill Roeloffs,
Forbes.com,
28 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Released in 1994, Sátántangó (based on László Krasznahorka’s novel) chronicled an impoverished Hungarian village that becomes seduced by a would-be prophet who has seemingly come back from the dead.—
Tim Grierson,
Rolling Stone,
6 Jan. 2026
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This year, we were seduced by silver trays and a new take on the TV-dinner table.—
Kate McGregor,
Architectural Digest,
26 Dec. 2025
Verb
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But the demonstrations are diffuse and largely leaderless, and Pezeshkian’s efforts at mediation — and the killings and arrests by security forces — have not persuaded the protesters to stay off the streets.—
Henry Austin,
NBC news,
7 Jan. 2026
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The paintings worked because viewers did not need to be persuaded that these scenes mattered.—
Philip Martin,
Washington Post,
7 Jan. 2026
Verb
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An Associated Press investigation found that unwitting Bangladeshi workers were enticed to Russia under the false promise of civilian work before being thrown into combat in Ukraine.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
28 Jan. 2026
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An Associated Press investigation found that unwitting Bangladeshi workers were enticed to Russia under the false promise of civilian work before being thrown into combat in Ukraine.—
Kamila Hrabchuk,
Los Angeles Times,
27 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Decoyed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/decoyed. Accessed 2 Feb. 2026.
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