ensnared 1 of 2

adjective

as in trapped

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ensnared

2 of 2

verb

past tense of ensnare
as in tangled
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

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 ensnared
Verb
But the incumbent faces a tough battle because of an affordability crisis and a corruption scandal that ensnared the same justice who led the investigation into Bolsonaro. — Arkansas Online, 5 Oct. 2026 Partners cannot tell which agreements will be ensnared in the next scandal, which encourages them to hedge. — Matias Spektor, Foreign Affairs, 2 Oct. 2026 Of course Charles would be suspicious of this pretty, educated girl who shows up out of nowhere, refuses to share what brought her here, and has clearly ensnared Adam. — Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 1 Oct. 2026 The white-hot brightness of Diana’s spotlight also ensnared her brother, Charles Spencer. — Elise Taylor, Vanity Fair, 29 Sep. 2026 Carrie Coon as a Holocaust survivor ensnared in a cult in The Liberation, the story of director Guy Nattiv’s own grandmother. — David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 8 Sep. 2026 The homeowner, Brett Bymaster, lauded officers for ending the chaotic situation swiftly and without any harm to his adult children, son-in-law, and young grandchildren who were unwittingly ensnared in the encounter. — Robert Salonga, Mercury News, 26 Aug. 2026 Abdeen was spared this round of scrutiny, but these leaders, and countless ordinary citizens, would be ensnared in the government’s new dragnet. — Rozina Ali, New Yorker, 21 Aug. 2026 Off the field, head coach Mike Vrabel was ensnared in controversy. — Jim Reineking, USA Today, 27 July 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ensnared
  1. trapped
  2. tangled
  3. bound
  4. enslaved
Adjective
  • Jaemor Farms employee Lynn Lewis even has a strategy for those who start to feel trapped.
    — Alexa Liacko, CBS News, 15 Oct. 2026
  • Numerous investigations have documented how patients can become trapped in a revolving door of treatment, relapse and reenrollment, with each relapse putting them at risk of overdose and death.
    — Ilan Shrira, The Conversation, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of trapped
Verb
  • Besides the challenge of rebuilding the tunnel, the railroad has been tangled for several years in legal disputes with the city of Fort Bragg and the California Coastal Commission.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 15 Oct. 2026
  • But ordinary matter, which interacts using all four fundamental forces, would get all tangled up.
    — Quanta Magazine, Quanta Magazine, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of tangled
Adjective
  • The team checked this directly by computing how much of each galaxy's baryon budget actually stayed bound to the system.
    — Paul Sutter, Space.com, 9 June 2026
  • To help calculate a lower bound, Erdős assumed that the points would be laid out in a grid.
    — ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 1 June 2026
Definition of bound
Adjective
  • Her path crosses with that of Inocência, an enslaved Black woman who possesses healing knowledge, knows the land, and devises her own strategies of resistance.
    — Rafa Sales Ross, Variety, 12 Oct. 2026
  • Ten Southern state legislatures endorsed the idea by passing laws that allowed the freeing of an enslaved person only when deportation out of the state was arranged and paid for.
    — Karen Masterson, The Conversation, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of enslaved

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Cite this Entry

“Ensnared.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ensnared. Accessed 21 Oct. 2026.

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