ensnared
Held by cunning
Ensnared is the past tense and past participle of ensnare, meaning caught in a snare or trap.
The word applies literally to animals captured by hunters but appears far more often in figurative contexts describing people caught up in situations they cannot easily escape: She found herself ensnared in a web of lies.
Someone ensnared by debt, scandal, or a manipulative relationship is trapped by circumstances rather than physical restraints.
Unable to escape
- caughtSeized or grabbed
- capturedTaken by force
- cagedConfined by bars
- imprisonedHeld in custody
confined · detained · cornered · penned · incarcerated · bound · restrained · shackled
Twisted confusedly together
- entangledTwisted together inseparably
- nettedCaught or cleared profit
- webbedConnected by membrane
- enmeshedCaught in complexity
snagged · intertwined · knotted · twisted · woven · wrapped · coiled · mesh
Equipped to lure
- luredAttracted by enticement
- temptedInclined to yield
- deceivedMisled into false belief
- trickedMisled by cunning
seduced · enticed · duped · beguiled · hooked · misled · drawn · inveigled
Device for catching animals
- ambushSurprise strike from concealment
- schemeCalculated strategy, often secretive
- ployCalculated deceptive tactic
- ruseDeliberate act of deception
machination · manipulation · conspiracy · intrigue · subterfuge · deception · guile · artifice
trapped
Unable to escape
imprisoned · confined · detained · cornered · penned · incarcerated · bound · restrained · shackled · fettered
tangled
Twisted confusedly together
enmeshed · snagged · intertwined · knotted · twisted · woven · wrapped · coiled · mesh · lattice
baited
Equipped to lure
tricked · seduced · enticed · duped · beguiled · hooked · misled · drawn · inveigled · conned
trap
Device for catching animals
- ambushSurprise strike from concealment
- schemeCalculated strategy, often secretive
- ployCalculated deceptive tactic
ruse · machination · manipulation · conspiracy · intrigue · subterfuge · deception · guile · artifice · gambit
- captivitycaptive, prisoner, detained, imprisoned, incarcerated
- dupeddeceived, tricked, fooled, conned, swindled
ensnaredfreed
Released from confinement
liberated · released · free · emancipated · unbound
ensnareddisentangled
Made free from snarls
extricated · untangled · clear · unentangled · uninvolved