1
as in ambushes
a device or scheme for capturing another by surprise
undercover agents devised a trap to catch the counterfeiters a bear trap
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in attacks
a setup in which hidden attackers lie in wait
an overland route to the Far East that was once notorious for the many robbers who laid traps for unsuspecting wayfarers
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in tangles
something that catches and holds
the promotion is really just a trap to keep her from taking a new job elsewhere
Synonyms & Similar Words
1
as in snares
to catch or hold as if in a net
an ambitious young man who was now trapped in a series of shady business deals
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in grabs
to take physical control or possession of (something) suddenly or forcibly
finally trapped the annoying fly in the palm of his hand
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of traps
Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 26 Aug. 2025
Pull-downs train your back muscles, including your lats, traps, and rear delts.
—Jakob Roze, Health, 25 Aug. 2025
Gamze Acar Bayraktaroglu, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025
The utility has a fraught history with the California Coastal Commission, whose former senior scientist dubbed Diablo Canyon California’s largest marine predator because its intake system traps copious ocean larvae.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 20 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for traps
Noun
In contrast, the novel system targets all fat types, including the hard-to-remove emulsified fats that typically escape conventional traps.
—Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 26 Aug. 2025
Pull-downs train your back muscles, including your lats, traps, and rear delts.
—Jakob Roze, Health, 25 Aug. 2025
Verb
In contrast, focusing on weaknesses traps people in a cycle of fixing deficiencies; over time, this limits performance by missing opportunities to generate truly forward-looking solutions.
—Gamze Acar Bayraktaroglu, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025
The utility has a fraught history with the California Coastal Commission, whose former senior scientist dubbed Diablo Canyon California’s largest marine predator because its intake system traps copious ocean larvae.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 20 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for traps
Recent Examples of Synonyms for traps
Noun
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The mission has also lost two members of its force in gang ambushes; while one has been confirmed dead the other is still been regarded as missing even though local media has reported him as dead.—
Jacqueline Charles,
Miami Herald,
1 Sep. 2025
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The recent Hamas ambushes have also raised growing concerns among Israeli military officials that more soldiers could be captured.—
Leila Seurat,
Foreign Affairs,
26 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Despite the downward pressure on cost of cyber attacks, the sector continues to grow, as more companies treat cyber security incidents as a top priority.—
Ganesh Rao,
CNBC,
4 Sep. 2025
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This prevents many attacks that use lookalike domain names or hacks such as DNS cache poisoning to create rogue sites masquerading as the real, trusted ones.—
Dan Goodin,
ArsTechnica,
4 Sep. 2025
Noun
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English also says that protective or tight styles can also lead to matting if left in too long, by compacting tangles at the base.—
Grace McCarty,
Glamour,
5 Sep. 2025
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Peralta leaders had kicked around the idea for years but avoided discussing it in concrete terms, with bureaucratic tangles often getting in the way.—
Shomik Mukherjee,
Mercury News,
23 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Researchers practiced bacterial gene sequencing to identify which microbes were present in the participants’ mouths before and after each treatment.—
Ashley J. DiMella,
FOXNews.com,
1 Sep. 2025
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Chelsea has offered over $40 million for the La Masia product according to Fabrizio Romano, which would be a bargain transfer leaving many Culers with a bitter taste in their mouths.—
Tom Sanderson,
Forbes.com,
31 Aug. 2025
Verb
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As fans scramble to catch the ball, footage shows, the ball appears to land one row in front of a woman while a man runs over and grabs it.—
Chandelis Duster,
NPR,
7 Sep. 2025
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With City’s left-back, Matheus Nunes, moving out of position to press Mainoo, Ugarte’s involvement grabs the attention of Ilkay Gundogan and Josko Gvardiol.—
Ahmed Walid,
New York Times,
4 Sep. 2025
Verb
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But Isaac catches Thing’s dart, then reattaches Thing to his arm and buries Wednesday alive.—
Selome Hailu,
Variety,
4 Sep. 2025
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The inner activated carbon filter catches invisible particles and helps to neutralize odors from cooking, pets, smoke, or your teenager’s gym bag.—
Maggie Horton,
People.com,
3 Sep. 2025
Noun
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For centuries people have collected it from the fog rolling in from oceans or over mountains using vegetation, containers or mesh nets to catch water vapor and condense it.—
Laura Paddison,
CNN Money,
6 Sep. 2025
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At the event, volunteers were armed with large white butterfly nets and headed down the Hank Aaron Trail to track down and tag the super generation’s monarch butterflies, Steinhauer said.—
Alyssa N. Salcedo,
jsonline.com,
4 Sep. 2025
Verb
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When Emily lands the coveted promotion that Luke had been vying for, their relationship ushers in a new complex power dynamic both inside and outside the office.—
Jacqueline Weiss,
PEOPLE,
7 Sep. 2025
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Reuters — The US government filed two lawsuits against Southern California Edison on Thursday, blaming the utility’s equipment for sparking two wildfires, including the Eaton Fire in January that damaged National Forest System lands.—
CNN Money,
CNN Money,
4 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Traps.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/traps. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
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