Decoy — Defs

01 v. t. To lead into danger by artifice; to lure into a net or snare; to entrap; to insnare; to allure; to entice; as, to decoy troops into an ambu…

imp. & p. p. Decoyed; p. pr. & vb. n. Decoying

1.
To lead into danger by artifice; to lure into a net or snare; to entrap; to insnare; to allure; to entice; as, to decoy troops into an ambush; to decoy ducks into a net.
“Did to a lonely cot his steps decoy.” — Thomson.

“E'en while fashion's brightest arts decoy, The heart, distrusting, asks if this be joy.” — Goldsmith.

Syn. To entice; tempt; allure; lure. See Allure.

02 n. Anything intended to lead into a snare; a lure that deceives and misleads into danger, or into the power of an enemy; a bait.

1.
Anything intended to lead into a snare; a lure that deceives and misleads into danger, or into the power of an enemy; a bait.
2.
A fowl, or the likeness of one, used by sportsmen to entice other fowl into a net or within shot.
3.
A place into which wild fowl, esp. ducks, are enticed in order to take or shoot them.
4.
A person employed by officers of justice, or parties exposed to injury, to induce a suspected person to commit an offense under circumstances that will lead to his detection.