bait
Any substance, especially food, used in catching fish, or other animals, by alluring them to a hook, snare, trap, or net.
Other meanings
food containing poison or a harmful additive to kill animals that are pests.
Anything which allures; something or someone used to lure or entice someone or something into doing something.
Synonyms
- come-on
- hook
- lure
- sweetener
Word history
From Old Norse "beita" (food, bait).
Where this comes from
This definition is adapted from “bait” on Wiktionary, by its contributors; related-word lists use Open English WordNet (CC BY 4.0, based on Princeton WordNet), published under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page is published under the same licence.