TEMPTS Synonyms: 65 Similar and Opposite Words

tempts

verb

present tense third-person singular of tempt

as in seduces

to lead away from a usual or proper course by offering some pleasure or advantage that chocolate dessert sure tempts me, but I should stick with my diet

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in risks

to take a chance on refusing to lay in enough food for the long winter tempts the dangers of starvation

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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 tempts For most, fear of shame is a necessary backstop to push people away from what wrongly tempts them. — Robert A. Ballingall, The Conversation, 13 Oct. 2026 While Sal tempts Sessa’s Bourdain with drugs, thievery and more bad behavior. — Laurie Ochoa, Los Angeles Times, 11 Aug. 2026 The slight dogleg to the right tempts players to take an aggressive line off the tee, but an expansive waste bunker guards the shortcut and punishes any miscalculation. — Jeff Goudy, Forbes.com, 27 July 2026 Plus, there’s something about being part of the process of buying (or growing) the ingredients and preparing a recipe that piques the curiosity of even the pickiest eater and tempts them to take a bite. — Libby Monteith Minor, Southern Living, 25 July 2026 Daniel’s presence is but one of many not-so-subtle ways Lestat tempts Louis back into his life. — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 7 June 2026 Doue and Dembele also drop into midfield, while Kvaratskhelia is his usual destructive self off the left, rounding off a nightmare of rotations and raw running power that tempts defences out of their shape before smashing through. — Sarah Shephard, New York Times, 29 May 2026 Frida is the most significant secondary figure — the person who tempts Gabrielle away from her trajectory, making her pause and ponder roads not taken. — Jon Frosch, HollywoodReporter, 13 May 2026 Boxing tempts him, the business world motivates him and his role as a promoter excites him. — Jorge Ebro may 6, Miami Herald, 6 May 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for tempts

Verb

Artificial plays like a modern-day parable in which the trickster god seduces the innocent.

— E. Alex Jung, Vulture, 2 Oct. 2026
Diaz centers music as the emotional vehicle that provides a philosophical structure for the character tropes and in turn psychologically seduces the audience to internalize certain ideas of social dynamics.

— Damaly Gonzalez, ARTnews.com, 30 Sep. 2026

Definition of seduces

Verb

If the person holding key intellectual property or leading the company risks losing status, immigration planning ceases to be a personal ordeal.

— Bernardo Saraiva, Forbes.com, 16 Oct. 2026
But even if the Election Commission is not systematically targeting voters based on their identity or their political preferences, the exercise still risks disenfranchising millions through sheer ineptitude.

— Pratap Bhanu Mehta, Foreign Affairs, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of risks

Verb

Turkey’s growing hair transplant and restoration industry in particular entices people with easy-to-digest all-inclusive packages advertised on their websites, online placements, and social media.

— Elizabeth Gulino, Allure, 23 Sep. 2026
The high-concept thriller stars Valeria Bruni Tedeschi as a demonic character called The Stranger, who entices a young mother played by Jasmine Trinca into forging a Faustian pact.

— Nick Vivarelli, Variety, 3 Sep. 2026

Definition of entices

Verb

In the exceedingly bleak ending to the book, Bela realizes that the demon has killed and styled itself after her Grandma Ruth, who lures Russell and Ursula to their death.

— William Earl, Variety, 9 Oct. 2026
The Vegetarian by Han Kang, 208 Pages This haunting novel lures readers when a woman’s sudden decision to stop eating meat triggers a destructive crisis in her family.

— Arabella Hau, Southern Living, 27 Sep. 2026

Definition of lures

Verb

Fielder persuades Holmes to watch it for the first time, on a laptop in the couple’s bed.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2026
While posing artfully in the store’s shop window, Klara catches the eye of Josie (Mia Tharia), who persuades her mother Chrissie (Amy Adams) to buy her as a companion.

— Damon Wise, Deadline, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of persuades

Verb

To take such a thing seriously in this age of nihilism and disenchantment betrays a person as potentially unserious, someone committed to abstraction, to feeling over logic and material reality.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 15 Oct. 2026
But the production here betrays its economy, and the direction, by Garth Davis and Laure de Clermont-Tonnerre, remains earthbound, held down by mournful strings and devoid of color.

— Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times, 1 Oct. 2026

Definition of betrays

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temptresses

tempts

ten

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“Tempts.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tempts. Accessed 19 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of tempts

verb

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