entice
/ɪnˈtaɪs/verb
entice is spelled E-N-T-I-C-E: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 1.4 times per million words in written English, the 23,835th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, entice means “To lure; to attract by arousing desire or hope” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in entice?
| Letters | 6: E-N-T-I-C-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.4 times per million words; the 23,835th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is entice?
Entice appears 1.4 times per million words in written English, the 23,835th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce entice?
- /ɪnˈtaɪs/
Entice has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-ca-entice.oga, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of entice
- entices present, singular, he/she/it
- enticing participle, present
- enticed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does entice mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To lure; to attract by arousing desire or hope.
I enticed the little bear into the trap with a pot of honey.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Entice in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense to lure; to attract by arousing desire or hope:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | appâter, attirer |
| German | locken, verführen |
| Portuguese | aliciar, atrair, tentar |
| Spanish | incitar, tentar, engolosinar, engatusar, encatusar, encantusar |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does entice come from?
From Middle English enticen, from Old French enticier (“to stir up or excite”), from a Vulgar Latin *intitiāre (“I set on fire”), from in- + titiō (“firebrand (tool)”), from Proto-Italic *tītjō (“heating”), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *teih₁- (“to become hot, melt or to end”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).