DECOYED

Verb

decoyed

simple past tense and past participle of decoy

Source: Wiktionary


DECOY

De*coy", v. t. [imp. & p. p. Decoyed; p. pr. & vb. n. Decoying.] Etym: [Pref. de- + coy; orig., to quiet, soothe, caress, entice. See Coy.]

Definition: To lead into danger by artifice; to lure into a net or snare; to entrap; to insnare; to allure; to entice; as, to decoy troops into an ambush; to decoy ducks into a net. Did to a lonely cot his steps decoy. Thomson. E'en while fashion's brightest arts decoy, The heart, distrusting, asks if this be joy. Goldsmith.

Syn.

– To entice; tempt; allure; lure. See Allure.

De*coy", n.

1. Anything intended to lead into a snare; a lure that deceives and misleads into danger, or into the power of an enemy; a bait.

2. A fowl, or the likeness of one, used by sportsmen to entice other fowl into a net or within shot.

3. A place into which wild fowl, esp. ducks, are enticed in order to take or shoot them.

4. A person employed by officers of justice, or parties exposed to injury, to induce a suspected person to commit an offense under circumstances that will lead to his detection.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Word of the Day

23 May 2025

THOUGHTFULLY

(adverb) showing consideration and thoughtfulness; “he had thoughtfully brought with him some food to share”


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Coffee Trivia

The word “coffee” entered the English language in 1582 via the Dutch “koffie,” borrowed from the Ottoman Turkish “kahve,” borrowed in turn from the Arabic “qahwah.” The Arabic word qahwah was traditionally held to refer to a type of wine.

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