snare
noun · verb
Simple meaning
A trap for birds or small mammals.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
snehrIPA pronunciation (US)
ˈsnɛɹ
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
A trap for birds or small mammals; often has a slip noose
music
A small drum with two heads and a snare stretched across the lower head
music
Strings stretched across the lower head of a snare drum; they make a rattling sound when the drum is hit
A trap (especially one made from a loop of wire, string, or leather).
music
A set of stiff wires held under tension against the bottom head of a drum to create a rattling sound.
A mental or psychological trap.
verb
Catch in or as if in a trap
transitive
To catch or hold, especially with a loop.
transitivefigurative
To ensnare.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- C1 · Advanced (estimated)
- Frequency
- Uncommon
- Formality
- Technical
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: A trap for birds or small mammals; often has a slip noose
Used this way, snare is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It stays understated rather than dramatic. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Mild
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Nearby words
- side drum , rarer, so it draws attention
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use snare
- “The car salesman had snared three potential customers.”verb
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
A small drum with two heads and a snare stretched across the lower head.
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
Synonyms
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.