seduce
Americanverb (used with object)
-
seduces,
present (3rd person singular)
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seduced,
past participle, past
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seducing
present participle
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to lead astray, as from duty, rectitude, or the like; corrupt.
- Antonyms:
- repel
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to persuade or induce to have sexual intercourse.
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to lead or draw away, as from principles, faith, or allegiance.
He was seduced by the prospect of gain.
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to win over; attract; entice.
a supermarket seducing customers with special sales.
verb
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to persuade to engage in sexual intercourse
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to lead astray, as from the right action
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to win over, attract, or lure
Usage
What does seduce mean? To seduce someone is to make them want to engage in sexual activity with you, especially in a subtle or manipulative way. Seduce is also commonly used in a more general way meaning to tempt or influence someone to do something, especially something bad or something they wouldn’t normally do. Though this sense of the word does not involve sex, it’s still often thought of as a metaphor for the type of seducing that does. Both senses of the word often imply a subtle manipulation in which one’s motives are hidden. People or things that seduce are said to be seductive. The act of seducing is called seduction. Example: They’re going to try to seduce you with flattery and a fancy dinner, but try to focus on the terms of the deal before you make your decision.
Synonym Usage
See tempt.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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seducernoun
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unseduciblenessnoun
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seduceableadjective
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seducibleadjective
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unseducibleadjective
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seducinglyadverb
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unseduciblyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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seducesimple
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seducessimple
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have seducedperfect
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has seducedperfect
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am seducingprogressive
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are seducingprogressive
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is seducingprogressive
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have been seducingperfect progressive
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has been seducingperfect progressive
Past
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seducedsimple
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had seducedperfect
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was seducingprogressive
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were seducingprogressive
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had been seducingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of seduce
First recorded in 1470–80; from Latin sēdūcere “to lead aside,” equivalent to sē- se- + dūcere “to lead”; replacing earlier seduise, from Middle French, from Latin, as above
Explanation
To seduce is to lure or entice, particularly away from obligations or proper behavior. A gorgeous day could seduce you from doing your homework. Seduce means something close to attract, beguile, tempt, and mislead. The word often has romantic overtones, but it doesn't have to: a clever criminal could seduce someone into a life of crime. When you're being seduced, it implies you're being tricked a little bit, often into something that's enticing but not so good.
Vocabulary lists containing seduce
Lead the Way: Duc and Duct
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"Julius Caesar" by William Shakespeare, Act I
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Selection Vocabulary 3, Unit 2
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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:
While the first four days are for the industry only, the weekend and Monday are open to the public, with organisers seeking to seduce a new generation of younger buyers.
From Barron's ● Apr. 14, 2026
HBO had already spent a mint trying to seduce viewers with its glamorous vision of antiquity.
From Salon ● Dec. 7, 2025
I also have questions for you about conscious or unconscious bias: What actual evidence do you have that this woman is trying to seduce your father?
From MarketWatch ● Dec. 1, 2025
Predictably, there’s a storm of fascination around Cignetti, and the snotty assumption that some bumbling Goliath like Penn State or Florida State will helicopter in with a Godfather offer and seduce the Hoosier coach.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2025
At first Baby Kochamma tried to seduce Father Mulligan with weekly exhibitions of staged charity.
From "The God of Small Things" by Arundhati Roy
When Sue Nyathi sent her debut novel The Polygamist to publishers, "they thought there was no market for the book" about a married Zimbabwean man and the women he seduces, she says.
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
Danielle Pinnock’s character, a Jamaican woman who is taken to America by a wizened older man she refers to as the “old raisin,” has a brassy boldness and bawdiness that also seduces the audience’s affections.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
"This is a collective success by the whole country that perfectly demonstrates Spain's enormous attractivity, because Spain is a country that seduces the world," he said.
From Barron's ● Jan. 15, 2026
But their testimony alone can’t expose the devil’s bargain of realpolitik, which seduces the unwary with the notion that making others suffer will benefit us.
From Salon ● Nov. 1, 2025
"The usurper seduces them still," replied the old man.
From The Ravens and the Angels With Other Stories and Parables by Elizabeth Rundle Charles
Top among them are the United States, where Americans on both coasts enjoy the cocktail hour staple -- but whose interior has yet to be seduced by the spritz.
From Barron's ● Jul. 29, 2026
Take “Avatar,” which seduced audiences with its immersive 3D format so intensely that some viewers reported experiencing depression returning to the real world.
From Salon ● Jul. 22, 2026
Catherine Earnshaw, raised in the “disorderly, comfortless” gothic abode of Wuthering Heights, is seduced by the refinement of the neighboring Thrushcross Grange, “a splendid place carpeted with crimson.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 10, 2026
“It is reprehensible that a state corrections officer can be seduced by greed and manipulated by others to commit such crimes that endanger the public,” Hochman said in the statement.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 17, 2026
He wished them no particular harm—concentrating his indignation upon the leaden who had seduced their addled pates—but he knew that they would have to be allowed their fight.
From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White
Ghosts have infested a wealthy widow’s factory and are possessing appliances, seducing her son and cozying up to the prime minister for favors.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 5, 2025
Rebecka says GenAI "is very seducing", but there isn't currently a way to incorporate it into developer's daily work.
From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2025
Provided Mencken's declared victory survives the inevitable legal challenges, that means Roman is continuing his father's business model of seducing presidents to fatten the corporate bottom line.
From Salon ● May 20, 2023
“Everyday Play: A Campaign Against Boredom” from London design press Redstone has lately been seducing customers from its place of pride by the front door.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 22, 2023
The smell of barbecue sauce was seeping from the window upstairs, seducing the whole hood.
From "When I Was the Greatest" by Jason Reynolds
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