Crossword clues for tempt
tempt
- "Don't ___ me"
- Wiggle a carrot in front of
- Try to pull
- Offer chocolates to, as a dieter
- Cause cravings
- Whet the appetite
- What some sirens do
- What sirens may do
- What a mouth-watering aroma can do
- Try to hook
- Render strongly disposed
- Play the vamp
- Offer forbidden fruit to
- Offer dessert to a dieter, for example
- Offer bait to
- Offer bait
- Offer a doughnut to a dieter, say
- Offer a carrot to, say
- Offer a beer to a recovering alcoholic, say
- Mimic a Siren
- Make very appealing to
- Make one's mouth water
- Make like Mephistopheles
- Emulate the Lorelei
- Emulate Eden's snake
- Emulate a legendary serpent
- Do Circe's job
- Do as Eden's serpent did
- Behave like Eve's snake
- Be inviting to
- Be appealing
- Attract one's fancy
- Attract enticingly
- Act the serpent
- Act the Lorelei
- Act like the serpent in Eden
- ___ fate (do something risky)
- ___ fate
- Offer an apple in Eden
- Dangle a carrot in front of
- Emulate Lorelei
- Proffer bait
- Bait
- Entice
- Lure
- Court disaster?
- Lead on
- Play the siren
- Tantalize
- Beguile
- Emulate Circe
- Emulate Old Scratch
- Test one's moral fiber
- Do the devil's work?
- Entice, attract
- Entice politician to visit street regularly
- Entice short-term worker with contract finally
- Appeal to dictator's worked on a short-term basis
- Seduce casual worker over time
- Risk provoking (fate)
- Reactionary occupant of No 10 in offensive sweet-talk
- Invite right-winger to abandon disdain
- Invite European MP in time after time
- Invite agency worker to try, initially
- Attract, entice
- Try to persuade cheat out of lack of respect
- Agency worker got, finally, invite
- Put to the test
- Draw in
- Act the siren
- Appeal to
- Emulate Eden's serpent
- Dangle a carrot
- Sweeten the deal
- Offer a bad choice to
- Emulate a siren
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Tempt \Tempt\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Tempted; p. pr. & vb. n. Tempting.] [OE. tempten, tenten, from OF. tempter, tenter, F. tenter, fr. L. tentare, temptare, to handle, feel, attack, to try, put to the test, urge, freq. from tendere, tentum, and tensum, to stretch. See Thin, and cf. Attempt, Tend, Taunt, Tent a pavilion, Tent to probe.]
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To put to trial; to prove; to test; to try.
God did tempt Abraham.
--Gen. xxii. 1.Ye shall not tempt the Lord your God.
--Deut. vi. 16. -
To lead, or endeavor to lead, into evil; to entice to what is wrong; to seduce.
Every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.
--James i. 14. -
To endeavor to persuade; to induce; to invite; to incite; to provoke; to instigate.
Tempt not the brave and needy to despair.
--Dryden.Nor tempt the wrath of heaven's avenging Sire.
--Pope. -
To endeavor to accomplish or reach; to attempt.
Ere leave be given to tempt the nether skies.
--Dryden.Syn: To entice; allure; attract; decoy; seduce.
Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
c.1200, of the devil, flesh, etc., "draw or entice to evil or sin, lure (someone) from God's law; be alluring or seductive," from Old French tempter (12c.), from Latin temptare "to feel, try out, attempt to influence, test," a variant of tentare "handle, touch, try, test." The Latin alteration is "explainable only as an ancient error due to some confusion" [Century Dictionary]. From late 14c. as "to provoke, defy" (God, fate, etc.). Related: Tempted; tempting.
Wiktionary
vb. 1 (context transitive English) To provoke someone to do wrong, especially by promising a reward; to entice. 2 (context transitive English) To attract; to allure. 3 (context transitive English) To provoke something; to court.
WordNet
v. dispose or incline or entice to; "We were tempted by the delicious-looking food" [syn: allure]
provoke someone to do something through (often false or exaggerated) promises or persuasion; "He lured me into temptation" [syn: entice, lure]
give rise to a desire by being attractive or inviting; "the window displays tempted the shoppers" [syn: invite]
induce into action by using one's charm; "She charmed him into giving her all his money" [syn: charm, influence]
try to seduce
try presumptuously; "St. Anthony was tempted in the desert"
Usage examples of "tempt".
Initially Roger had been tempted by the idea of such affluence, but after making the acquaintance of the most undesirable Miss Grimbald, he had decided marrying her would be too great a sacrifice for him to endure beyond the measure of an hour.
The Excession is still the more important matter, but its appearance and the possibilities it may open up have been used by the conspiracy to tempt the Affront into initiating hostilities.
Constantine, to whose sons they had engaged their allegiance by an oath of fidelity, which the ingratitude of his most favored servants had tempted them to violate.
Clovis, their friend and proselyte, had privately tempted the allegiance of his brother.
Grumbler stopped again, momentarily confused, angrily tempted to lob a magnapult canister across the broken terrain toward the impact, but the emissary ear reported no physical movement from the area.
It is tempting to surmise that a culture chooses its most reviled species for ballistics research.
There was no reason for Blizzard to be such a hardass over this, and Chee was tempted to tell him so.
After all, they are subjected to the massive brainwashing, and why would any of us be tempted to try those first experimental cigarettes unless we suspected that there was some pleasure or prop?
How tempting, how tantalizing, Bree thought, wishing it had come ages ago without prompting, without the need to rectify their undeclared war on each other.
Once he was armed again Soldier was tempted to put on the brigandine for protection and begin slaying the owners of the fort.
Even those once known to support that right above all others had been browbeaten and tempted by preferment to adopt a different attitude.
He had been tempted for one volcanic second to stab Stephen with the dagger which he always carried under his burnous and embroidered vest, but a lightning-flash of reason bade him hold his hand.
For a wild moment, she was tempted to try her new hypnotherapy technique on him.
After five years of a kingdom-wide war, you know that his realms must be aswarm with veteran soldiers, and Zastros is offering them anything that he feels might tempt themamnesties and lands to nobles who fought against him, manumissions to escaped slaves, excellent wages to mercenaries, and mountains of loot for all.
He was tempted to order his driver to stop the jeep so he could show Manzo what happened to underlings who chronically complained, but he refrained for two reasons.