ensnaring

verb

present participle of ensnare
as in trapping
to catch or hold as if in a net parked just out of view, the state trooper was lying in wait to ensnare unwary speeders

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of ensnaring From SiriusXM to gym memberships to streaming services, automatic rollovers are ensnaring consumers into subscriptions all across the economy. — Lindsay Owens, New York Daily News, 28 Sep. 2026 But Musk’s particular vulnerability now extends far beyond the boardroom, potentially ensnaring millions of mom-and-pop investors now exposed to one or both companies through index funds. — Allison Morrow, CNN Money, 2 Sep. 2026 Six months later, the war trudges on, indirectly ensnaring much of the world by severely disrupting global trade. — Mark Sappenfield, Christian Science Monitor, 27 Aug. 2026 And in that quest for unbridled growth, the AI industry has wrested ungodly amounts of capital from investors all looking for the next big thing, ensnaring the entire economy. — Matteo Wong, The Atlantic, 26 Mar. 2026 The upcoming April 7 vote over the renewal of Kansas City’s 1% earnings tax will mark one of the biggest tests of whether that opposition could risk ensnaring a critical resource for the city. — Kacen Bayless, Kansas City Star, 25 Mar. 2026 And if a mother kept a piece of jasper on hand throughout her child’s infancy, they would both be protected from malign spirits of the air and from the tongue of the ancient serpent that was hell‑bent on ensnaring newborns. — Literary Hub, 18 Mar. 2026 After months of investigating allegations of a $140 million Ponzi scheme, Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger's office has made numerous criminal referrals and issued $1 million in fines, ensnaring a number of state GOP figures. — Olivia Rubin, ABC News, 26 Feb. 2026 The Greek name is of uncertain origin, but it’s often linked to ideas of binding, entangling, or ensnaring—reflecting the Sirens’ deadly allure. — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 31 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ensnaring
  1. trapping
  2. tangling
  3. entrapping
Verb
  • Murres resemble penguins with dense, waterproof feathers that look like a tuxedo and function like a wetsuit — trapping a layer of air against their skin to keep them warm and dry, Boland said.
    — Stephanie Zappelli, Sacbee.com, 22 Oct. 2026
  • The incident happened on July 9, trapping approximately 100 vehicles inside the garage.
    — Adam Thompson, CBS News, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of trapping
Verb
  • It’s designed to handle loose hair of any length without tangling.
    — Audrey Lee, Architectural Digest, 8 Oct. 2026
  • In 1984 the late mathematician Vaughan Jones introduced a new way to assign polynomials to knots, thereby tangling the two fields together.
    — Lyndie Chiou, Scientific American, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of tangling
Verb
  • One fascination of this brave book—brave in its disclosures but more so in its demands, its spiritual rigor, and its ardent intellectualism—lies in watching the eloquent, intelligent sufferer steadily entrapping herself.
    — James Wood, New Yorker, 19 Oct. 2026
  • Democrats called the hearing a politically motivated attempt at entrapping Fauci and praised the scientist for his work during the pandemic.
    — Lauran Neergaard, Fortune, 29 July 2026
Definition of entrapping

Browse Nearby Words

ensnares
ensnaring
ensnarl
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Cite this Entry

“Ensnaring.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ensnaring. Accessed 29 Oct. 2026.

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