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bait

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
See also: bait- and -bait

English

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Pronunciation

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Etymology 1

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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.

Noun

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bait (countable and uncountable, plural baits)

  1. Any substance, especially food, used in catching fish, or other animals, by alluring them to a hook, snare, trap, or net.
    attach bait to a hook
    catch a few using bait
  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
    • 2017 June 7, Adam Lusher, “Adnan Khashoggi: the 'whoremonger' whose arms deals funded a playboy life of decadence and 'pleasure wives'”, in The Independent[1], London:
      One of the “girls” used in this way, Pamella Bordes, later spoke of being “part of an enormous group … used as sexual bait.”
    1. (as the head of a compound) Something that lures or entices a specified group
      queerbait
      sequel bait
      Netflix bait
  4. A portion of food or drink, as a refreshment taken on a journey; also, a stop for rest and refreshment.
    • 1824, Thomas Fielding, Select Proverbs of All Nations, page 132:
      A short stop, but no refreshment. Such baits are frequently given by the natives of the principality to their keffels, or horses, particularly after climbing a hill.
    • 1803 (date written), [Jane Austen], chapter XX, in Northanger Abbey; published in Northanger Abbey: And Persuasion. [], volume (please specify |volume=I or II), London: John Murray, [], 20 December 1817 (indicated as 1818), →OCLC, page page 70:
      The tediousness of a two hours' bait at Petty-France, in which there was nothing to be done but to eat without being hungry, and loiter about without any thing to see, next followed []
    1. (Geordie, Durham) A packed lunch - the bite to eat a worker took with them to eat
    2. (East Anglia) A small meal taken mid-morning while farming.
    3. (Northern England) A miner's packed meal.
    4. A light or hasty luncheon.
  5. (Internet slang) A post intended to elicit a, usually strong or negative, reaction from others.
    Please stop posting bait, or I will have to mute you.
Alternative forms
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  • (abbreviation) b8
Derived terms
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Translations
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The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Verb

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bait (third-person singular simple present baits, present participle baiting, simple past and past participle baited)

  1. (transitive) To attract with bait; to entice.
  2. (transitive) To affix bait to a trap or a fishing hook or fishing line.
  3. (transitive) To lay baits in an environment to control pest species.
  4. (transitive) To target a pest species by laying baits.
Usage notes
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  • This verb is sometimes confused in writing with the rare verb bate, which is pronounced identically; in particular, the expression with bated breath is frequently misspelled *with baited breath by writers unfamiliar with the verb bate.
Alternative forms
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  • (abbreviation) b8
Translations
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References

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  • Scott Dobson, Dick Irwin “bait”, in Newcastle 1970s: Durham & Tyneside Dialect Group[2], archived from the original on 2024-09-05.
  • Frank Graham, editor (1987), “BAIT”, in The New Geordie Dictionary, Rothbury, Northumberland: Butler Publishing, →ISBN.
  • Northumberland Words, English Dialect Society, R. Oliver Heslop, 1893–4
  • Todd's Geordie Words and Phrases, George Todd, Newcastle, 1977[3]
  • Bill Griffiths, editor (2004), “bait”, in A Dictionary of North East Dialect, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear: Northumbria University Press, →ISBN.

Etymology 2

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From Middle English bayten, baiten, beiten, from Old Norse beita (to bait, cause to bite, feed, hunt), from Proto-Germanic *baitijaną (to cause to bite, bridle), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰeyd- (to cleave, split, separate). Cognate with Icelandic beita (to bait), Swedish beta (to bait, pasture, graze), German beizen (to cause to bite, bait), Old English bǣtan (to bait, hunt, bridle, bit).

Verb

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bait (third-person singular simple present baits, present participle baiting, simple past and past participle baited)

  1. (transitive) To set dogs on (an animal etc.) to bite or worry; to attack with dogs, especially for sport.
    to bait a bear with dogs
    to bait a bull
  2. (transitive) To intentionally annoy, torment, or threaten by constant rebukes or threats; to harass.
    Synonyms: badger, hound; see also Thesaurus:pester
    • 1826 February 11 (date written), Walter Scott, “[Entry dated 11 February 1826]”, in David Douglas, editor, The Journal of Sir Walter Scott [], volume I, Edinburgh: David Douglas, published 1890, →OCLC:
      I remember once before, a mad woman, from about Alnwick, by name baited me with letters and plans — first for charity for herself or some protégé — I gave my guinea— then she wanted to have half the profits of a novel which I was to publish under my name and auspices.
    • 2025 February 28, Jonah Goldberg, “Dishonor and Incompetence in the Oval Office”, in The Dispatch:
      But [US Vice President J.D.] Vance, the champion of diplomacy, shouldn’t have baited a war-weary man fighting for the survival of his country in the first place.
  3. (transitive, archaic) To feed and water (a horse or other animal), especially during a journey.
  4. (intransitive) Of a horse or other animal: to take food, especially during a journey.
    • 1603, Michel de Montaigne, chapter 22, in John Florio, transl., The Essayes [], book II, London: [] Val[entine] Simmes for Edward Blount [], →OCLC:
      King Cyrus, that he might more speedily receave news from al parts of his Empire (which was of exceeding great length), would needs have it tried how far a horse could in a day goe outright without baiting, at which distance he caused stations to be set up, and men to have fresh horses ready for al such as came to him.
    • 1821, John Clare, “[Poems.] Sunday Walks.”, in The Village Minstrel, and Other Poems, volume II, London: [] [T. Miller] for Taylor and Hessey, []; and E[dward] Drury, [], →OCLC, pages 105–106:
      [H]orses' playful neigh, / From rustic's whips, and plough, and waggon, free, / Baiting in careless freedom o'er the leas, / Or turn'd to knap each other at their ease.
  5. (intransitive) (of a person) To stop to take a portion of food and drink for refreshment during a journey.
See also
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Etymology 3

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French battre de l'aile or des ailes, to flap or flutter.

Verb

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bait (third-person singular simple present baits, present participle baiting, simple past and past participle baited)

  1. (obsolete, intransitive) To flap the wings; to flutter as if to fly; or to hover, as a hawk when she stoops to her prey.

Etymology 4

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Etymology unknown.

Adjective

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bait (comparative baiter, superlative baitest)

  1. (MLE) Obvious; blatant.
    • 2008, “Power”, in Famous?, performed by Jamie "Jme" Adenuga and Tim Westwood:
      I've been at home all day / Cloning £50 notes, this is sick / But it's a bit bait / Cause all the serial numbers are the same / So I can't spend them in the same place
  2. (MLE) Well-known; famous; renowned.
Synonyms
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References

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  • Tony Thorne (2014) “bait”, in Dictionary of Contemporary Slang, 4th edition, London,  []: Bloomsbury

Anagrams

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Cimbrian

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Etymology

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From Middle High German wīt, from Old High German wīt, from Proto-Germanic *wīdaz (wide, broad). Cognate with German weit, Dutch wijd, English wide, Icelandic víður.

Adjective

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bait (comparative baitor, superlative dar baitorste) (Sette Comuni, Luserna)

  1. wide, broad
    an baitar bèga wide road
    Dar bèg is bait.The road is wide.
  2. distant, far
    Synonym: vèrre

Declension

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Derived terms

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References

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  • “bait” in Martalar, Umberto Martello, Bellotto, Alfonso (1974) Dizionario della lingua Cimbra dei Sette Communi vicentini, 1st edition, Roana, Italy: Instituto di Cultura Cimbra A. Dal Pozzo

Indonesian

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Indonesian Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia id

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /ˈba.it/, [ˈba.ɪt̪̚]

Etymology 1

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Inherited from Malay bait, from Arabic بَيْت (bayt), from Proto-Semitic *bayt-.

Noun

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bait (plural bait-bait)

  1. house (abode)
  2. home (house or structure in which someone lives)
  3. (literature) couplet (a pair of lines in poetry)
    Synonyms: untai, kuplet
  4. (literature) stanza (a unit of a poem, often in the form of a paragraph)
    Synonym: stanza
Derived terms
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Etymology 2

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Borrowed from Malay bait, from English byte.

Noun

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bait (plural bait-bait)

  1. (nonstandard) Alternative spelling of bita

Further reading

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Malay

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Pronunciation

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Etymology 1

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From Arabic بَيْت (bayt), from Proto-Semitic *bayt-.

Noun

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bait (Jawi spelling بيت, plural bait-bait)

  1. house (abode)
  2. home (house or structure in which someone lives)
  3. (literature) couplet (a pair of lines in poetry)
Descendants
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  • Indonesian: bait

Etymology 2

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From English byte.

Noun

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bait (Jawi spelling باٴيت, plural bait-bait)

  1. byte

Further reading

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Marshallese

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Pronunciation

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  • (phonetic) IPA(key): [pˠɑːitˠ], (enunciated) [pˠɑ itˠ]
  • (phonemic) IPA(key): /pˠæɰjitˠ/
  • Bender phonemes: {bahyit}

Noun

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bait

  1. boxing

Verb

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bait

  1. hit
  2. punch

References

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Middle English

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Noun

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bait

  1. Alternative form of bayte

Portuguese

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Etymology

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Unadapted borrowing from English bait.

Pronunciation

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  • (Brazil) IPA(key): /ˈbej.t͡ʃi/ [ˈbeɪ̯.t͡ʃi], /ˈbejt͡ʃ/ [ˈbeɪ̯t͡ʃ]
    • (Southern Brazil) IPA(key): /ˈbejt͡ʃ/ [ˈbeɪ̯t͡ʃ], /ˈbej.t͡ʃi/ [ˈbeɪ̯.t͡ʃi]

Noun

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bait m (plural baits)

  1. (Internet slang) bait (post intended to elicit a reaction from others)

Further reading

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  • bait”, in Dicionário inFormal (in Portuguese), 20062025

Romanian

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Noun

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bait m (plural baiți)

  1. Alternative form of byte

Declension

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Declension of bait
singular plural
indefinite definite indefinite definite
nominative-accusative bait baitul baiți baiții
genitive-dative bait baitului baiți baiților
vocative baitule baiților

Tagalog

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Etymology

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From Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *bait. Compare Bikol Central buot, Cebuano buot, Malay baik, and Maori pai.

Pronunciation

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  • (Standard Tagalog) IPA(key): /baˈʔit/ [bɐˈʔɪt̪̚], (colloquial) /baˈʔet/ [bɐˈʔɛt̪̚]
  • Rhymes: -it
  • Syllabification: ba‧it

Noun

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baít (Baybayin spelling ᜊᜁᜆ᜔)

  1. kindness
    Synonyms: kabaitan, kabutihang-loob, kagandahang-loob
  2. senses; clear state of mind
    Synonyms: sentido, sentido-komun, huwisyo, isip
  3. prudence; cautiousness
    Synonyms: timpi, pigil
  4. docility; domesticity

Derived terms

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Anagrams

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Welsh

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Alternative forms

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Verb

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bait

  1. (literary) second-person singular imperfect subjunctive of bod

Synonyms

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Mutation

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Mutated forms of bait
radical soft nasal aspirate
bait fait mait unchanged

Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Welsh.
All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.