tempted; tempting; tempts
1
: to entice to do wrong by promise of pleasure or gain
2
a
: to induce to do something
b
: to cause to be strongly inclined
was tempted to call it quits
Synonyms
Examples of tempt in a Sentence
that chocolate dessert sure tempts me, but I should stick with my diet
refusing to lay in enough food for the long winter tempts the dangers of starvation
Recent Examples on the Web
All of this excitement may tempt you to place some bets on what will happen — but is that actually a good idea?
—
Becca Stanek, theweek, 6 Nov. 2024
Ammon did appear tempted to talk the walk in Portland, to become the Mormon cowboy philosopher king wandering a degenerate realm of an ailing Republic, but by now time was in extremely short supply.
—Matt Thompson, SPIN, 5 Nov. 2024
The fact that its nuclear warheads are so close to Ukraine could, in fact, tempt Russia to conduct a false-flag operation on its own storage sites in order to justify a nuclear attack.
—William M. Moon, Foreign Affairs, 5 Nov. 2024
Anyone tempted to take the over should keep in mind that most of Penn State's biggest games in recent years have been slugfests (21-7 over Illinois earlier this year, 28-13 over Wisconsin last week, not to mention last year's 20-12 loss to the Buckeyes and 24-15 loss to Michigan).
—Marco Rubio, Newsweek, 2 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for tempt 
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Becca Stanek, theweek, 6 Nov. 2024
Ammon did appear tempted to talk the walk in Portland, to become the Mormon cowboy philosopher king wandering a degenerate realm of an ailing Republic, but by now time was in extremely short supply.
—Matt Thompson, SPIN, 5 Nov. 2024
The fact that its nuclear warheads are so close to Ukraine could, in fact, tempt Russia to conduct a false-flag operation on its own storage sites in order to justify a nuclear attack.
—William M. Moon, Foreign Affairs, 5 Nov. 2024
Anyone tempted to take the over should keep in mind that most of Penn State's biggest games in recent years have been slugfests (21-7 over Illinois earlier this year, 28-13 over Wisconsin last week, not to mention last year's 20-12 loss to the Buckeyes and 24-15 loss to Michigan).
—Marco Rubio, Newsweek, 2 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for tempt
Dictionary Entries Near tempt
Cite this Entry
“Tempt.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tempt. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
tempt
verb1
: to persuade or try to persuade to do wrong by promise of pleasure or gain
2
: to risk the dangers of
tempt fate
3
a
: to get to do something
tempted her to taste the cake
b
: to cause to have a certain feeling
was tempted to quit
tempter
noun
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