ENGLISH
REFERENCE

seduce

v.
C1 Advanced US //sɪˈdus// UK //sɪdjˈuːs// se·duce Humorous

v. to persuade someone to do something they might not usually do, often by making it seem very attractive or exciting. It is frequently used when talking about romance or tempting someone away from their duties.

v. to entice or persuade someone into a course of action, often through charm, promise of reward, or sexual attraction. Transitive; frequently used in both literal romantic contexts and figurative contexts involving temptation or professional poaching.


SIMPLE

The beautiful weather might seduce us into staying another day.

CONTEXTUAL

The rival firm tried to seduce their top engineer with a massive salary increase and better benefits.

COMPLEX

While the marketing campaign was designed to seduce younger consumers with promises of exclusivity, the high price point ultimately acted as a significant barrier to entry.

Synonyms
Origin

Borrowed from Latin sēdūcō (“to lead apart or astray”), from sē- (“aside, away, astray”) + dūcō (“to lead”); see duct. Compare adduce, conduce, deduce, etc. and Middle English seduct.

Usage

The verb is transitive and requires a direct object. Often used with the preposition 'into' followed by a gerund.

Pitfall

He seduced to herHe seduced herSeduce is a transitive verb and takes a direct object without a preposition.

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