bait

[beyt]

noun

food, or some substitute, used as a lure in fishing, trapping, etc.

a poisoned lure used in exterminating pests.

an allurement; enticement: Employees were lured with the bait of annual bonuses.

an object for pulling molten or liquefied material, as glass, from a vat or the like by adhesion.

South Midland and Southern U.S.

a large or sufficient quantity or amount: He fetched a good bait of wood.
an excessive quantity or amount.

British Slang. food.

verb (used with object)

to prepare (a hook or trap) with bait.

to entice by deception or trickery so as to entrap or destroy: using fake signal lights to bait the ships onto the rocks.

to attract, tempt, or captivate.

to set dogs upon (an animal) for sport.

to worry, torment, or persecute, especially with malicious remarks: a nasty habit of baiting defenseless subordinates.

to tease: They love to bait him about his gaudy ties.

to feed and water (a horse or other animal), especially during a journey.

verb (used without object) Archaic.

to stop for food or refreshment during a journey.

(of a horse or other animal) to take food; feed.

Origin of bait

1150–1200; Middle English bait, beit (noun), baiten (v.) < Old Norse, probably reflecting both beita to pasture, hunt, chase with dogs or hawks (ultimately causative of bíta to bite; cf. bate³) and beita fish bait

Related formsbait·er, nouno·ver·bait, verb (used with object)re·bait, verb (used with object)un·bait, verb (used with object)

Can be confusedbait batebaited bated

Synonyms for bait

11. badger, heckle, pester.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for baited

Contemporary Examples of baited

As the country waited with baited breath, national media covered the mission to rescue the miners, stuck 240 feet underground.
The Bangladesh Factory Collapse Survivor and More Miraculous Rescues (VIDEO)
Holly Bernal, Ben Teitelbaum
May 10, 2013
She baited the line and stood on the muddy bank in that outfit.
Meghan McCain on Her Grandmother Roberta McCain’s 100th Birthday
Meghan McCain
February 7, 2012
Another soldier was outed by an Evangelical roommate who had baited him into the revelation.
My Life as a Gay Officer
Anonymous
May 26, 2010
God has his ways of evening out the score—and one waits with baited schadenfraude and trembling.
'Mom, Dad—I Need $96K'
Kathleen Parker
July 10, 2009

Historical Examples of baited

Tired and hungry, and then baited like a bull by your rusty wits!
In Sunny Spain with Pilarica and Rafael
Katharine Lee Bates
I would sooner trifle with a she-bear the minute after they had baited her.
The Fortunes of Nigel
Sir Walter Scott
She generally managed to keep a half-dozen gentlemen biting at the hook that she baited so temptingly for them.
Behind the Scenes
Elizabeth Keckley
It was set right in the trail and baited with a chunk of pork tied to the muzzle and connected with the trigger by a string.
Bears I Have Met--and Others
Allen Kelly
The expression of baited anger returned to Mr. Hilton's intent face.
The Rake's Progress
Marjorie Bowen

British Dictionary definitions for baited

bait

noun

something edible, such as soft bread paste, worms, or pieces of meat, fixed to a hook or in a trap to attract fish or animals

an enticement; temptation

a variant spelling of bate 4

Northern English dialect food, esp a packed lunch

archaic a short stop for refreshment during a journey

verb

(tr) to put a piece of food on or in (a hook or trap)

(tr) to persecute or tease

(tr) to entice; tempt

(tr) to set dogs upon (a bear, etc)

(tr) archaic to feed (a horse), esp during a break in a journey

(intr) archaic to stop for rest and refreshment during a journey

Word Origin for bait

C13: from Old Norse beita to hunt, persecute; related to Old English bǣtan to restrain, hunt, Old High German beizen

usage

The phrase with bated breath is sometimes wrongly spelled with baited breath

bait

verb

a variant spelling of bate 2

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for baited

adj.

c.1600, "furnished with bait," past participle adjective from bait (v.2). Hence, in a figurative sense, "exciting, alluring" (1650s). For bated breath see bate (v.1).

bait

"food put on a hook or trap to lure prey," c.1300, from Old Norse beita "food," related to Old Norse beit "pasture," Old English bat "food," literally "to cause to bite" (see bait (v.)). Figurative sense "anything used as a lure" is from c.1400.

bait

v.1

"to torment or goad (someone unable to escape, and to take pleasure in it)," c.1300, beyten, a figurative use from the literal sense of "to set dogs on," from the medieval entertainment of setting dogs on some ferocious animal to bite and worry it (the literal use is attested from c.1300); from Old Norse beita "to cause to bite," from Proto-Germanic *baitan (cf. Old English bætan "to cause to bite," Old High German beizzen "to bait," Middle High German beiz "hunting," German beizen "to hawk, to cauterize, etch"), causative of *bitan (see bite (v.)); the causative word forked into the two meanings of "harass" and "food offered." Related: Baited; baiting.

bait

v.2

"to put food on a hook or in a trap," c.1300, probably from bait (n.). Related: Baited; baiting.

Idioms and Phrases with baited

bait

In addition to the idiom beginning with bait

bait and switch

also see:

fish or cut bait
jump at (the bait)
rise to the bait

bait

noun

verb (used with object)

verb (used without object) Archaic.

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Origin of bait

Synonyms for bait

Examples from the Web for baited

Contemporary Examples of baited

Historical Examples of baited

bait

noun

verb

Word Origin for bait

usage

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verb

bait

bait

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