ensnare
Americanverb (used with object)
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ensnares,
present (3rd person singular)
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ensnared,
past participle, past
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ensnaring
present participle
verb
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to catch or trap in a snare
-
to trap or gain power over someone by dishonest or underhand means
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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ensnaresimple
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ensnaressimple
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have ensnaredperfect
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has ensnaredperfect
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am ensnaringprogressive
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are ensnaringprogressive
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is ensnaringprogressive
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have been ensnaringperfect progressive
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has been ensnaringperfect progressive
Past
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ensnaredsimple
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had ensnaredperfect
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was ensnaringprogressive
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were ensnaringprogressive
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had been ensnaringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of ensnare
Explanation
To ensnare something is to trap it. Instead of using snapping mousetraps, you might try to ensnare the mice in your kitchen and set them free outside. While you can use the verb ensnare to talk about literally catching something in a trap, it's also useful for more figurative kinds of traps. Your French teacher might try to ensnare you in becoming more involved in the French club, or rush hour traffic might ensnare you as you rush to make it to work on time. The word combines the prefix en, or "put in," and snare, with its Old Norse root snara, "noose or snare."
Vocabulary lists containing ensnare
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
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The Odyssey
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Surviving Hitler
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The states suing Meta claimed it used its platforms "to entice, engage, and ultimately ensnare youth and teens," and ignored the damage they did to the "mental and physical wellbeing of America's youth".
From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026
Multilingual scripts, images of young women and timed toilet breaks: a police tour of a newly busted cyberscam operation in Cambodia on Wednesday revealed how fraudsters ensnare foreign victims online.
From Barron's ● Mar. 11, 2026
The law is so broad and vague that it could ensnare anyone who maintains databases such as Mr. Webb’s.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 26, 2025
There’s evidence that buckwheat and bush sunflower can take up lead, and saltbush can ensnare arsenic, Fang said, also name-checking corn, squash and cucumber for their ability to sequester contaminants such as dioxins.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 23, 2025
They might hate each other but they stuck together against the world and against any woman who would ensnare one of them.
From "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" by Betty Smith
For Myriam Gurba, fog is a condition that disorients and ensnares.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 28, 2023
Once stuck, they can be subjected to all manner of embarrassments — such as when the girls’ target is their father — or pleaded with to share, as when Bingo ensnares Bluey.
From New York Times ● Aug. 25, 2022
Females spin a web shaped like a slice of pie, pull it taut, then let go the instant an insect strikes, so the web collapses and ensnares her prey.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 19, 2022
It includes cutting red tape that ensnares energy projects, lifting restrictions for on- and offshore-lease sales, and offering support for the industry to promote new investments and production.
From Washington Times ● Jun. 15, 2022
And 'tis an enemy who, scattering tares Amid the corn sown in Creation's field, With deadly coil the growing plant ensnares.
From Old-Fashioned Ethics and Common-Sense Metaphysics With Some of Their Applications by William Thomas Thornton
Those charges followed a sprawling indictment of 34 defendants that also ensnared Hall of Fame player and Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups and former Lakers assistant coach Damon Jones.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 29, 2026
The globe-spanning scandal also ensnared Pras Michel, a rapper in rap trio the Fugees, who was found guilty of helping Low funnel money from 1MDB into US politics.
From Barron's ● May 13, 2026
He was one of about 200 people ensnared in Operation Catch of the Day, the overwhelming majority of whom had no criminal record.
From Slate ● Apr. 15, 2026
The fake-police scam has ensnared tens of thousands of people in India, authorities say.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 30, 2026
Ifemelu stared at him, saying little, refusing to be ensnared, and feeling strangely sorry for Kimberly To be saddled with a sister like Laura and a husband like this.
From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Even before ensnaring Ruffo, the ever-expanding huachicol fiscal scandal had already scarred the Mexican navy, long one of the nation’s most trusted institutions.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 3, 2026
Karp also appeared to seek favors from Epstein, ensnaring himself in his web.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 6, 2026
It caused waves in the global car industry, ensnaring several other top carmakers and leading to legal action in several countries.
From Barron's ● Oct. 10, 2025
Victims say soaring scams, weak bank safeguards, and poor recovery expose regulatory gaps in a country where digital banking has outpaced cybercrime checks, ensnaring people across classes.
From BBC ● Sep. 7, 2025
Thrashing and growling at the net, trying to rip free, Summer was only ensnaring himself worse.
From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
