1
as in taunting
to attack repeatedly with mean put-downs or insults
I wished the candidates would stop baiting each other and instead address the real issues
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in tempting
to lead away from a usual or proper course by offering some pleasure or advantage
the investment scheme cunningly baits the greedy and the unscrupulous
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of baiting
Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 27 Jan. 2026
Ian Wright lost his temper with anyone and everyone and after the game ended up yelling out the windows of the dressing room in a slanging match with the fans below in Avenell Road who had been baiting the players.
—Amy Lawrence, New York Times, 27 Jan. 2026
Start with uncovered cups, then increase difficulty by baiting only some cups to encourage scent work.
—Lucy Notarantonio, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 Dec. 2025
That’s a tall order after expanding a literary world once, but doing it twice without baiting catastrophe is exponentially harder.
—Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 8 Dec. 2025
The disease was deeply contagious and caused horrific suffering to those afflicted, so public assemblies—like theater shows and bear-baiting fights—were frequently canceled to help slow the spread.
—Nathan Smith, Time, 26 Nov. 2025
If someone comes out with an album that's influenced by ‘70s rock, why is that person not nostalgia baiting?
—Bailey Richards, PEOPLE, 25 Nov. 2025
Realizing that Grok is now prone to praising Musk as superior in every respect, X users have taken to baiting it with increasingly ridiculous prompts.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 20 Nov. 2025
For reasons not entirely or even mostly of her own doing, Sweeney has become an exasperating celebrity — not above baiting the press, but so painstakingly media trained that her public appearances are devoid of substance and any sense of personality.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 7 Nov. 2025
Verb
Kevin Huerter drew an offensive foul when the Lakers tried to push their luck in transition by baiting James into pushing his arm into Huerter’s neck.
—Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 27 Jan. 2026
Ian Wright lost his temper with anyone and everyone and after the game ended up yelling out the windows of the dressing room in a slanging match with the fans below in Avenell Road who had been baiting the players.
—Amy Lawrence, New York Times, 27 Jan. 2026
Start with uncovered cups, then increase difficulty by baiting only some cups to encourage scent work.
—Lucy Notarantonio, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 Dec. 2025
That’s a tall order after expanding a literary world once, but doing it twice without baiting catastrophe is exponentially harder.
—Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 8 Dec. 2025
The disease was deeply contagious and caused horrific suffering to those afflicted, so public assemblies—like theater shows and bear-baiting fights—were frequently canceled to help slow the spread.
—Nathan Smith, Time, 26 Nov. 2025
If someone comes out with an album that's influenced by ‘70s rock, why is that person not nostalgia baiting?
—Bailey Richards, PEOPLE, 25 Nov. 2025
Realizing that Grok is now prone to praising Musk as superior in every respect, X users have taken to baiting it with increasingly ridiculous prompts.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 20 Nov. 2025
For reasons not entirely or even mostly of her own doing, Sweeney has become an exasperating celebrity — not above baiting the press, but so painstakingly media trained that her public appearances are devoid of substance and any sense of personality.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 7 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for baiting
Adjective
-
To get a sense of his whole deal, look no further than the half-mocking, half-earnest title of his latest album, Country!—
Jonathan Bernstein,
Rolling Stone,
23 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Defense attorney Kevin Rousseau suggested in witness questioning that Bell-Johnson, who is known as One Leg and uses a prosthetic limb, sought comfort in gang membership in part because of taunting connected to his disability.—
Emerson Clarridge
Updated February 9,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
10 Feb. 2026
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Another child care center director recounted how vehicles full of taunting men have driven by more than once.—
Frederick Melo,
Twin Cities,
6 Feb. 2026
Verb
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As Mercury stations retrograde in your sign, confidence wavers and old narratives resurface, tempting you to retreat or overexplain.—
Valerie Mesa,
PEOPLE,
3 Feb. 2026
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Instead of women tempting men with vice, now the great fear is that women will tempt men with virtue.—
Hillary Rodham Clinton,
The Atlantic,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
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OpenAI has been teasing the introduction of ads for weeks.—
Jared Perlo,
NBC news,
9 Feb. 2026
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Dunkin' has been teasing the Big Game ad for some time.—
Nick Romano,
Entertainment Weekly,
9 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Both Kelly and Landfair were adamant about their love, and a 17-year-old Landfair was so deep under her abuser’s spell that her parents had no hope of successfully luring her away from Kelly.—
Cheyenne Roundtree,
Rolling Stone,
31 Jan. 2026
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If the crisp, cold weather is luring you into a secluded, comfortable hideaway, Amazon’s tiny home collection is a good place to start.—
Julia Morlino,
Travel + Leisure,
31 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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In cases of significant thinning, Small recommends procedures like platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy or micro-needling.—
Rebecca Strong,
USA Today,
10 Feb. 2026
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Glaser was at her best when needling awards-show tropes.—
Hershal Pandya,
Vulture,
13 Jan. 2026
Verb
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In the complaint, which was first filed in September in a North Carolina state court, plaintiff Heather Ammel accused Sinema of seducing her ex-husband Matthew Ammel, who began working for Sinema in April 2022 as part of her security detail.—
Chad de Guzman,
Time,
16 Jan. 2026
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In Arthur Penn’s 1975 neo-noir Night Moves, Griffith is Delly Grastner, a 16-year-old runaway with a little girl’s voice and a grown woman’s body—on full display in an underwater nude scene—intent on seducing Gene Hackman, 43 and paunchy.—
Lili Anolik,
Vanity Fair,
12 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Reuters reported that BlackRock CEO Larry Fink, who hosted the dinner of some 200 people as co-chair of the World Economic Forum, ended the dinner after the heckling incident — before dessert was served.—
Ashleigh Fields,
The Hill,
22 Jan. 2026
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Vice President Vance appeared on FOX News Channel’s The Ingraham Angle hours after the heckling incident, telling the host about visiting with the national guardsmen and discussing recent changes to the city, while briefly mentioning the protesters.—
Jillian Frankel,
People.com,
21 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Baiting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/baiting. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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