English Reference

Word

seductive

Phoneticsse·duc·tive

US/sɪˈdəktɪv/

UK/sɪdˈʌktɪv/

Definition

adj. tempting and attractive in a way that makes you want something, even if it might be a bad idea. It describes things that are hard to resist.

adj. tending to entice or lead away from duty or proper conduct; having an alluring or tempting quality. Often describes abstract concepts like power or ideas as well as physical attraction.

Examples

“The idea of quitting my job and traveling was very seductive.”

“Advertisers often use seductive imagery to convince consumers that a product will change their entire lifestyle.”

“The politician's seductive rhetoric promised simple solutions to complex problems, successfully masking the potential long-term consequences of the proposed policies.”

Examples

simple

“The idea of quitting my job and traveling was very seductive.”

contextual

“Advertisers often use seductive imagery to convince consumers that a product will change their entire lifestyle.”

complex

“The politician's seductive rhetoric promised simple solutions to complex problems, successfully masking the potential long-term consequences of the proposed policies.”

Usage

Often used predicatively after linking verbs like 'be', 'seem', or 'find'.

Real-World Examples

“Acting is like being in some seductive foreign country where you want to try the food and wear the clothes.”
The Guardian · 23 Sept 2026
“Of course the photographer has to make the image seductive, so that a viewer actually wants to get to that point.”
The Guardian · 23 Sept 2026
“That framing is seductive – it’s the stuff that films are made of – but it sets a trap.”
The Guardian · 7 Aug 2026

Etymology

From Latin sēduct-, past-participle stem of sēdūcere, + -ive.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This entry

Level
B2 · Upper Intermediate
Frequency
Frequent
Updated

Scan code

englishreference.com/q/seductive

English Reference