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as in hitch
a danger or difficulty that is hidden or not easily recognized
he noticed the booby trap in the interviewer's question just a little too late
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of booby-trap
Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Christopher McFadden, Interesting Engineering, 25 Dec. 2025
In the original Home Alone, Kevin is forced to defend him home from two bumbling burglars by setting various booby traps around the house.
—Mitchell Peters, Billboard, 21 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for booby-trap
Verb
So what is a modernist like Mayer, who made such cool craft of ancient stuff 20 years ago with Spring Awakening, to do with something as hokey and booby-trapped as Chess?
—Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Noun
While claims of booby traps and rivers of mercury would likely make anyone think twice about entering the tomb, this is not the main barrier to full excavation.
—Christopher McFadden, Interesting Engineering, 25 Dec. 2025
In the original Home Alone, Kevin is forced to defend him home from two bumbling burglars by setting various booby traps around the house.
—Mitchell Peters, Billboard, 21 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for booby-trap
Recent Examples of Synonyms for booby-trap
Verb
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Mobs attacked television vans and set cars ablaze as overrun hospitals struggled to cope with scores of injured people.—
Rhea Mogul,
CNN Money,
6 Feb. 2026
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The complication is not well understood but appears to be the result of the virus prompting the immune system to attack a certain protein that some brain cells produce.—
Meghan Bartels,
Scientific American,
5 Feb. 2026
Noun
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The Earnshaw family’s home at Wuthering Heights itself is a nightmare (again, complimentary), seemingly made of both raw ore and shiny tile, a deep, dark mine that appears made to hurt.—
Kate Erbland,
IndieWire,
9 Feb. 2026
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Rosedale was once known for its quarries and mines.—
Rebecca Mead,
New Yorker,
9 Feb. 2026
Noun
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With the snow and ice cleared from the track and grandstands, drivers have zoomed around the North Carolina short track built in Bowman Gray Stadium — a multi-use facility that also hosts Winston-Salem State University football games — and went through practice and qualifying without a hitch.—
Alex Zietlow,
Charlotte Observer,
4 Feb. 2026
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Montreal’s game against Minnesota appeared to go off without a hitch.—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
3 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Iran has been refusing requests by the agency to inspect the sites bombed in the June war.—
Farnoush Amiri,
Los Angeles Times,
11 Feb. 2026
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Such joint ventures could allow Ukraine to produce more of its weapons elsewhere in Europe, ensuring stability of supply if factories inside Ukraine get bombed.—
Simon Shuster,
The Atlantic,
10 Feb. 2026
Noun
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By 1999, the use, production and transport of antipersonnel land mines had been banned globally.—
Lizz Schumer,
PEOPLE,
29 Jan. 2026
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In Finland, talks with the domestic defense industry and anti-personnel land mine training for military personnel will start early this year.—
Reuters,
NBC news,
14 Jan. 2026
Verb
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He’s trapped in rolling crises of his own making and is struggling to sell voters on the idea of a strong American economy.—
Ben Smith,
semafor.com,
9 Feb. 2026
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By cutting so much of Brontë’s sprawling novel down to the quick, by focusing so squarely on just Cathy and Heathcliff, we’re trapped only in the immediacy of their doomed affection, which is never allowed to be hot enough to make the entire effort come together, let alone come undone.—
Kate Erbland,
IndieWire,
9 Feb. 2026
Noun
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The risk remained even after researchers accounted for how closely people followed a healthy Mediterranean-style diet.—
Khloe Quill,
FOXNews.com,
6 Feb. 2026
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Of course, any intense media scrutiny risks being distracting, especially when it is not directly related to the work of the foundation.—
Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson,
semafor.com,
6 Feb. 2026
Noun
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The sheets felt slightly softer after washing and drying them, and there were no snags, tears, loose threads, or color fading.—
Brandi Fuller,
Better Homes & Gardens,
29 Jan. 2026
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Long delayed by weather, the flight had overcome two last-minute snags caused by seemingly minor computer and weather problems.—
Miami Herald Archives,
Miami Herald,
27 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Booby-trap.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/booby-trap. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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