SNARE | definition in the Cambridge English Dictionary
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English (US)

Meaning of snare in English

snare
noun [ C ]
us
/sner/ uk
/sneər/
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a device for catching small animals and birds, usually with a rope or wire that tightens around the animal
 
bauhaus1000/DigitalVision Vectors/GettyImages
a trick or situation that deceives you or involves you in some problem that you do not know about:
The legal system is full of snares for those who are not wary.
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Hunting & fishing
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You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:
snare
verb [ T ]
us
/sner/ uk
/sneər/
to catch an animal using a snare:
We used to snare small birds such as sparrows and robins.
figurative She grew up in the days when a woman's main aim was to snare a rich husband.
Thesaurus: synonyms, antonyms, and examples
to take a wild or loose animal
  • catchThe dog got out, but we caught her.
  • netWe netted a ton of fish downstream.
  • trawlCommercial fisheries trawl these waters for cod.
  • trollThey troll for tuna far offshore.
  • lassoThe cowboys learned at a young age how to lasso horses and steers.
  • trapThe turtles are trapped for their flesh.
See more results »
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Hunting & fishing
See more results »
(Definition of snare from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

snare | Intermediate English

snare
noun [ C ]
us
/sneər/
Add to word list Add to word list
a device for catching small animals, usually with a rope or wire that tightens around the animal
A snare is also a trick or situation that deceives you or involves you unexpectedly in a problem:
The legal system is full of snares for the unwary.
snare
verb [ T ]
us
/sner, snær/
to get or achieve something that is difficult to get:
Arriving in Nashville, she had hopes of snaring a country-music record contract.
(Definition of snare from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

Examples of snare

snare
Wednesday morning's dragnet, which snared two county judges, a business executive, a union leader and the deputy county auditor, offered a waterfall of revelations.
From Plain Dealer
This means they play the hi-hat cymbal with their left hand, while their right hand plays the snare.
From NPR
He reaches behind his back, pulls out a snare drum from among a half-dozen sitting on the floor behind him, and tries out ideas.
From NPR
But that doesn't stop poachers from setting snares, which has had a devastating effect on snow leopard populations.
From National Geographic
But the irony that the government snared some of the more minor players vs. the occupation instigators wasn't lost on legal observers.
From OregonLive.com
Of course, notwithstanding the red flags, she moves further into his snare like a moth to a flame.
From Huffington Post
But what exactly is happening when we produce, say, the snare drum effect?
From Slate Magazine
These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.
What is the pronunciation of snare?
 

Translations of snare

in Chinese (Traditional)
陷阱，羅網, 圈套，陷阱, （用羅網、陷阱）捕捉，誘捕…
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in Chinese (Simplified)
陷阱，罗网, 圈套，陷阱, （用罗网、陷阱）捕捉，诱捕…
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in Spanish
trampa, atrapar…
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in Portuguese
armadilha, apanhar…
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in more languages
in Turkish
in French
in Dutch
in Czech
in Danish
in Indonesian
in Thai
in Vietnamese
in Polish
in Swedish
in Malay
in German
in Norwegian
in Ukrainian
in Russian
tuzak, kapan, tuzak kurmak…
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piège, prendre au piège…
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strik, strikken…
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oko, chytit do oka/pasti…
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snare, fælde, fange i en fælde…
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jerat, menjerat…
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กับดัก, ดักโดยใช้กับดัก…
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cái bẫy, cái lưới, đánh bẫy…
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sidła, wnyki, łapać (w sidła)…
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snara, snärja…
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perangkap, memerangkap…
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die Schlinge, mit einer Schlinge fangen…
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snare, fange i snare…
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пастка, сильце, піймати в пастку…
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западня, ловушка, поймать в западню…
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snappish
snappishly
snappy
snapshot
snare
snare drum
snared
snarf
snarfed

Word of the Day

gyroscopically

UK
/ˌdʒaɪ.rəˈskɒp.ɪ.kəl.i/
US
/ˌdʒaɪ.rəˈskɑː.pɪ.kəl.i/

with the use of a gyroscope (= a device containing a wheel that spins freely within a frame, used on aircraft, ships, etc. to help keep them horizontal)

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