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bait

Pronunciation: /beɪt/

The English word “bait” has 20 meanings listed here.

noun

  1. Any substance, especially food, used in catching fish, or other animals, by alluring them to a hook, snare, trap, or net.
  2. Food containing poison or a harmful additive to kill animals that are pests.
  3. Anything which allures; something or someone used to lure or entice someone or something into doing something.
  4. Something that lures or entices a specified group.
  5. Someone that attracts or entices a specified sex act being done to them.
  6. A portion of food or drink, as a refreshment taken on a journey; also, a stop for rest and refreshment.
  7. A packed lunch - the bite to eat a worker took with them to eat.
  8. A small meal taken mid-morning while farming.
  9. A miner's packed meal.
  10. A light or hasty luncheon.
  11. A post intended to elicit a, usually strong or negative, reaction from others.

verb

  1. To attract with bait; to entice.
  2. To affix bait to a trap or a fishing hook or fishing line.
  3. To lay baits in an environment to control pest species.
  4. To target a pest species by laying baits.
  5. To set dogs on (an animal etc.) to bite or worry; to attack with dogs, especially for sport.
  6. To intentionally annoy, torment, or threaten by constant rebukes or threats; to harass.
  7. To feed and water (a horse or other animal), especially during a journey.
  8. Of a horse or other animal: to take food, especially during a journey.
  9. (of a person) To stop to take a portion of food and drink for refreshment during a journey.

Etymology

From Middle English bayte, bait, beite, from Old Norse beita (“food, bait”), from Proto-Germanic *baitō (“that which is bitten, bait”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰeyd- (“to cleave, split, separate”). Cognate with German Beize (“mordant, corrosive fluid; marinade”), Old English bāt (“that which can be bitten, food, bait”). Related to bite.

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Definitions are from Wiktionary, extracted by Kaikki.org, and are available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.