fatale
Seductive and dangerous
Fatale is French for "fatal" or "deadly," appearing in English almost exclusively in the phrase femme fatale—a seductive woman who leads men to ruin.
Occasionally used alone with the same meaning: She played the fatale in three noir films.
The word retains its French pronunciation and feminine gender marking.
Magical influence over someone
- captivationState of being fascinated
- fascinationIntense absorbed interest
- magnetismForce between poles
- mystiqueAura of fascination
bewitchment · glamour · spellbinding · enticement · irresistible · beguiling · mesmerizing · hypnotic
Woman who entices
- enchantressWoman who uses sorcery
- sirenWailing alert device
- vixenFemale of Reynard's kind
- maneaterCreature that hunts humans
jezebel · seductress · man-eater · scheming · manipulative · predatory · duplicitous · treacherous
Able to cause expiration
- lethalCausing or capable of death
- destructiveCausing severe harm
- ruinousCausing severe destruction
- perilousFraught with danger
doom · downfall · demise · undoing · catastrophic · devastating · treacherous · venomous
Puzzling and obscure
- inscrutableImpossible to understand
- veiledConcealed or obscured
- shadowyObscured by darkness
- mysteriousBeyond easy comprehension
unknowable · sphinxlike · obscure · secretive · concealed · hidden · unfathomable · elusive
Tough, cynical fiction style
- detectiveProfessional crime investigator
- shadowyObscured by darkness
- smokyFilled with combustion haze
- cigarette-holderTube extending a smoke
nightclub · trenchcoat · cynical · doomed · sultry · blackmail · betrayal · underworld
enchantment
Magical influence over someone
- captivationState of being fascinated
- fascinationIntense absorbed interest
- magnetismForce between poles
mystique · bewitchment · glamour · spellbinding · enticement · irresistible · beguiling · mesmerizing · hypnotic · intoxicating
temptress
Woman who entices
- enchantressWoman who uses sorcery
- sirenWailing alert device
- vixenFemale of Reynard's kind
maneater · jezebel · seductress · man-eater · scheming · manipulative · predatory · duplicitous · treacherous · double-crossing
deadly
Able to cause expiration
- lethalCausing or capable of death
- destructiveCausing severe harm
- ruinousCausing severe destruction
perilous · doom · downfall · demise · undoing · catastrophic · devastating · treacherous · venomous · toxic
enigmatic
Puzzling and obscure
- inscrutableImpossible to understand
- veiledConcealed or obscured
- shadowyObscured by darkness
mysterious · unknowable · sphinxlike · obscure · secretive · concealed · hidden · unfathomable · elusive · cryptic
hardboiled
Tough, cynical fiction style
cigarette-holder · nightclub · trenchcoat · cynical · doomed · sultry · blackmail · betrayal · underworld
- fatal flawRuinous character defect
- fatal accidentUnintended event causing death
- femme fataleTreacherous enchantress
- fatal woundInjury causing death
- fatal errorUnrecoverable computing malfunction
- fatal blowLethal strike, ending life