tempt

[tempt]

See more synonyms for tempt on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object)

to entice or allure to do something often regarded as unwise, wrong, or immoral.
to attract, appeal strongly to, or invite: The offer tempts me.
to render strongly disposed to do something: The book tempted me to read more on the subject.

to put (someone) to the test in a venturesome way; provoke: to tempt one's fate.
Obsolete. to try or test.

Origin of tempt

1175–1225; Middle English < Latin temptāre to probe, feel, test, tempt

Related formstempt·a·ble, adjectivepre·tempt, verb (used with object)self-tempt·ed, adjectivesu·per·tempt, verb (used with object)un·tempt·a·ble, adjectiveun·tempt·ed, adjective

Synonyms for tempt

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1. Tempt, seduce may both mean to allure or entice to something unwise or wicked. To tempt is to attract by holding out the probability of gratification or advantage, often in the direction of that which is wrong or unwise: to tempt a man with a bribe. To seduce is literally to lead astray, sometimes from that which absorbs one or demands attention, but oftener, in a moral sense, from rectitude, chastity, etc.: to seduce a person away from loyalty. 2. inveigle, induce, lure, incite, persuade.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for tempt

stimulate, fascinate, tantalize, captivate, motivate, induce, seduce, woo, persuade, charm, attract, intrigue, dare, invite, bait, move, influence, inveigle, honey, hook

Examples from the Web for tempt

Contemporary Examples of tempt

He says certain books, and even scary Halloween horror movies, tempt people to the devil.
Pope Francis Gives Blessing to Exorcist Conference
Barbie Latza Nadeau
October 29, 2014
Small things about every day that tempt people, we wanted to find out what they were.
Michael B. Jordan: Playing a Black Superhero in 'Fantastic Four' Is a 'Huge Responsibility'
Kevin Fallon
September 28, 2014
You can never know who can become a spy for the enemy if you have enough means to pressure him, to blackmail him, to tempt him.
When the Son of Hamas Spied for Israel
Nina Strochlic
August 5, 2014
Hoping to tempt her back into writing, her agent suggested that she and her husband collaborate on a book in his genre.
Isabel Allende’s Controversial New Thriller
Jane Ciabattari
February 23, 2014
Fearful lest curiosity might tempt me to open it, I had never even looked at it in book-stores.
Read ‘The King in Yellow,’ the ‘True Detective’ Reference That’s the Key to the Show
Robert W. Chambers
February 20, 2014

Historical Examples of tempt

And to tempt him there was this new mystery, this knowledge that he could not miss.
Way of the Lawless
Max Brand
That would be to tempt God: means as well as results are his.
Weighed and Wanting
George MacDonald
Magnificent was the day, indeed, and sorely did La Malne tempt us to a halt.
The Roof of France
Matilda Betham-Edwards
It was hard to dissemble still, to tempt him to say something that would madden me!
Green Mansions
W. H. Hudson
And now he just peeped in, to see if he could tempt me forth to play.
Tales And Novels, Volume 9 (of 10)
Maria Edgeworth

British Dictionary definitions for tempt

tempt

verb (tr)

to attempt to persuade or entice to do something, esp something morally wrong or unwise
to allure, invite, or attract
to give rise to a desire in (someone) to do something; disposetheir unfriendliness tempted me to leave the party
to risk provoking (esp in the phrase tempt fate)

Derived Formstemptable, adjectivetempter, noun

Word Origin for tempt

C13: from Old French tempter, from Latin temptāre to test

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 tempt

early 13c., from Old French tempter (12c.), from Latin temptare "to feel, try out, attempt to influence, test." Related: Tempted; tempting.