entrap

Catch through deception

To entrap is to catch in a trap or lure into a compromising situation.

The word often appears in legal contexts, where entrapment occurs when law enforcement induces someone to commit a crime they wouldn't otherwise have committed: The defendant argued he was entrapped by undercover officers.

More broadly, to entrap is to trick someone into difficulty: She felt entrapped by her own lies.

capture

snare

Device for catching prey

  • netFinal amount remaining
  • cageBarred confinement structure
  • seizeTake suddenly, forcibly

ambush · noose · lure · bait · apprehend · detain · arrest · confine · immobilize · restrain

deceive

trick

Deliberate deception

con · dupe · bamboozle · swindle · beguile · lure · decoy · ruse · ploy · subterfuge

coerce

pressure

Force upon contact

blackmail · extort · intimidate · threaten · constrain · railroad · strong-arm · frame · set up · implicate

predicament

quagmire

Soft, wet ground

  • bindFasten or obligate
  • cornerMeeting point of edges
  • boxLidded storage container

jam · fix · pickle · mire · hole · impasse · deadlock · web · tangle · labyrinth

Categories
Opposites
physical confinement

entrapfree

Without payment or restriction

release · liberate · set free · extricate · disentangle

deception/manipulation

entrapwarn

Give notice of peril

play fair · inform · alert · disclose · forewarn

legal/procedural context

entrapexonerate

Clear of wrongdoing

clear · acquit · vindicate · observe · catch red-handed

Family

entrapment, entrapped, entraps, entrapping

Familiarity
Top 200,000
Profile
Used worldwide · Timeless · Negative · Everyday, not technical · Rated PG