snare 1 of 2

snare

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verb

Synonym Chooser

How does the verb snare contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of snare are bag, capture, catch, ensnare, entrap, and trap. While all these words mean "to come to possess or control by or as if by seizing," 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

When is bag a more appropriate choice than snare?

In some situations, the words bag and snare are roughly equivalent. However, bag implies shooting down a fleeing or distant prey.

bagged a brace of pheasants

When is it sensible to use capture instead of snare?

Although the words capture and snare have much in common, capture suggests taking by overcoming resistance or difficulty.

capture an enemy stronghold

When would catch be a good substitute for snare?

The synonyms catch and snare are sometimes interchangeable, but catch implies the seizing of something in motion or in flight or in hiding.

caught the dog as it ran by

How are the words entrap and ensnare related as synonyms of snare?

Both entrap and ensnare more often are figurative.

entrapped the witness with a trick question
a sting operation that ensnared burglars

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 snare
Noun
Time is running out to further boost its sensitivity and tighten its snare around this slippery subatomic subversive. Gayoung Lee, Scientific American, 14 Apr. 2025 We all have been bedeviled at times by bureaucratic snafus (and snares), and so improvement is necessary. John Baldoni, Forbes.com, 26 Apr. 2025
Verb
Inside a narrow, precarious passageway, his left foot was snared by a rock. Laura Collins-Hughes, New York Times, 21 Apr. 2025 His case is connected to the same betting ring that snared former NBA player Jontay Porter, who was banned from the league for life. Joseph Wilkinson, New York Daily News, 30 Jan. 2025 See All Example Sentences for snare
Recent Examples of Synonyms for snare
Noun
  • One of the key challenges for companies is avoiding the trap of performative activism—actions that appear supportive but lack meaningful impact.
    Doug Melville, Forbes.com, 18 June 2025
  • Researchers reviewing camera trap footage from a remote island off Panama found that a group of adolescent capuchin monkeys were routinely kidnapping baby howler monkeys and carrying them around like accessories.
    Popular Science Team, Popular Science, 18 June 2025
Noun
  • About a dozen streets on it bore names; the rest was a tangle of lines.
    The New York Times, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 June 2025
  • That development was paused amid a tangle of lawsuits in 2023 and 2024, but is moving forward after the cases were resolved in November and March.
    Nick Rosenberger, Idaho Statesman, 4 June 2025
Verb
  • In the few months since its launch, JD.com has grabbed 7.5% of China’s food-delivery market after its daily meal orders reached 20 million on May 13, according to a May 14 research note from Blue Lotus Capital Advisors.
    Yue Wang, Forbes.com, 18 June 2025
  • To help keep your home safe (and know when your Prime Day packages arrive), grab a Ring Battery Doorbell with Indoor Cam for under $150.
    Laura Lu, Parents, 17 June 2025
Noun
  • Also watch out for ambush drones parked by the side of the road, which take off when a target approached.
    David Hambling, Forbes.com, 10 June 2025
  • But in South Africa, the two leaders’ reaction to their Oval Office ambush served as a remarkable public display of a new era in the country’s politics, one marked by solidarity and compromise.
    Kate Bartlett, Christian Science Monitor, 9 June 2025
Noun
  • Too little, too late, my friend — but at least June looks surprised/appreciative as Lydia is manhandled into a noose of her own.
    Kimberly Roots, TVLine, 20 May 2025
  • The law holds the boy accountable despite his lack of malice, only for Alec Baldwin — of all people — to save Lucas from a noose by murdering all of his jailers.
    David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 2 May 2025
Verb
  • Special teams and the crazy switching up of the D Pairs after the first two, very even games has been the story of the series so far for me A Andrew K. · 42m ago Maple Leafs catching strays.
    Daniel Nugent-Bowman, New York Times, 16 June 2025
  • Continue reading … -- IN OTHER NEWS SMASHED – Tourist caught crushing Swarovski chair in Italian museum's 'nightmare' scenario.
    , FOXNews.com, 16 June 2025
Noun
  • Our micro-scale community web has resulted in strong relationships, new businesses, cleaner streets, a sense of safety and the ability to rally for greater causes than any of us could do alone.
    Anastasia G Mcateer, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 June 2025
  • That future web is one in which most people and organizations depend on AI for most tasks.
    Matteo Wong, The Atlantic, 18 June 2025
Verb
  • California Burglars clean out father-son jewelers, snatch heirlooms, ‘a lifetime’s worth of work’ May 28, 2025 Nasarenko added that the offenses carried additional enhancements since the burglary drew more than $3 million.
    Andrew J. Campa, Los Angeles Times, 13 June 2025
  • The result is, at best, a temporary reprieve snatched out of defeat.
    The Editors, National Review, 12 June 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Snare.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/snare. Accessed 28 Jun. 2025.

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