snare
1 Americannoun
verb (used with object)
-
snares,
present (3rd person singular)
-
snared,
past participle, past
-
snaring
present participle
-
to catch with a snare; entangle.
-
to catch or involve by trickery or wile.
to snare her into going.
noun
noun
-
a device for trapping birds or small animals, esp a flexible loop that is drawn tight around the prey
-
a surgical instrument for removing certain tumours, consisting of a wire loop that may be drawn tight around their base to sever or uproot them
-
anything that traps or entangles someone or something unawares
verb
-
to catch (birds or small animals) with a snare
-
to catch or trap in or as if in a snare; capture by trickery
noun
Synonym Usage
See trap 1.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
snaresimple
-
snaressimple
-
have snaredperfect
-
has snaredperfect
-
am snaringprogressive
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are snaringprogressive
-
is snaringprogressive
-
have been snaringperfect progressive
-
has been snaringperfect progressive
Past
-
snaredsimple
-
had snaredperfect
-
was snaringprogressive
-
were snaringprogressive
-
had been snaringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of snare1
First recorded before 1100; Middle English (noun and verb); cognate with Old Norse snara, Middle Low German snare, Old High German snar(a)ha
Origin of snare2
1680–90; < Middle Low German snare or Middle Dutch snaer string; replacing Old English snēr string of a musical instrument
Explanation
A snare is a trap, usually for small animals, and using a noose. Snare can also mean to trap in general or any type of trap, like the snare of a TV cliffhanger that traps you into watching again. If writers are to be believed, we are surrounded by snares. Francis Beaumont implores us to know that “the world’s a snare.” And Hilda Doolittle asserts that “a snare is Love.” Still Soren Kierkegaard lets us know that “the truth is a snare: you cannot have it, without being caught.” Whoever is right, it seems that you can’t escape. A snare is also a type of small drum that rattles, as well as a wire loop used by surgeons.
Vocabulary lists containing snare
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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:
Once released, the spring-loaded snare launches the ant more than 30 centimeters upward into the spider's main web.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 26, 2026
Within moments, scientists found green ants approached the trap and bit it - causing the snare to spring and the prey to be launched into the spider's web at "extreme" acceleration.
From BBC ● Jun. 23, 2026
In reality, just a few inches of the sticky stuff was enough to snare a heavy animal in place until it either died of exposure or fell prey to predators, who then became trapped themselves.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 6, 2026
Also percussive yet much quieter is Anri Sala’s snare drum, dangling upside down from the ceiling at Esther Schipper.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 14, 2026
A single vertical mark represented a unit, while a heel bone represented 10, a swirly snare stood for 100, and so on.
From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife
However, other wild dogs tracked with GPS collars in the study died in illegal snares, underlining the dangers they face.
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026
That includes shrinking the Fed’s balance sheet to stay out of fiscal policy, and avoiding other political snares.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 24, 2026
In the 2018 book “Hinterland,” Phil A. Neel described the sound of America’s exurban sprawl as “guns cocking over trap snares unrolling to infinity.”
From Salon ● May 16, 2025
He snares a suite of tiles and wins a coin within 11 minutes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 29, 2025
During that time I made four snares from notched branches.
From "Island of the Blue Dolphins" by Scott O'Dell
Moldovan tourist Raisa Neagu spent hours on Wednesday waiting to fuel up her scooter, one of many people snared in a petrol shortage on resort island Bali that authorities blamed on supply disruptions.
From Barron's ● Oct. 14, 2026
Kelce is not the first sports star to be snared in an investment scheme.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 18, 2026
Linsey Smith was particularly difficult to get away at the start en route to 2-15 while Dean took 3-13 and Sophie Ecclestone snared 1-11.
From BBC ● May 25, 2026
Lionsgate’s blockbuster Michael Jackson documentary, “Michael,” snared $20 million, bringing its total to $314 million.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 24, 2026
Lillian had snared the Crown Prince in her net, and now Kaltain must cut him free.
From "Throne of Glass" by Sarah J. Maas
For nearly 40 years, Culver City’s Mr. Bones Pumpkin Patch has been a go-to destination for snaring those essential Halloween decorations all while exploring an artisanally crafted pumpkin village.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
The Romanian filmmaker’s stoic drama is designed to provoke viewers in opposite directions, snaring them in waiting traps and causing them to concede in agony, “You have a point!”
From Salon ● Sep. 19, 2026
Websites purporting to offer demo versions of the forthcoming “Grand Theft Auto” version VI are snaring gamers in malware, according to cybersecurity company Malwarebytes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026
FBAR, far from snaring high rollers, sets the amount at $10,000.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 17, 2026
Perhaps to shift my mind from my worries, he showed me how he did his snaring, using a few long strands of horsetail hair that he kept in his bag.
From "Crispin: The Cross of Lead" by Avi
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
