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Added 4 October 2026

snare

/snɛ(ə)ɹ/ noun

In Latin: laqueus, transenna, tenus Wiktionary

noun Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about snare at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

A trap (especially one made from a loop of wire, string, or leather).
A mental or psychological trap.
A loop of cord used in obstetric cases, to hold or to pull a fetus from the mother animal.

verb

To catch or hold, especially with a loop.
To ensnare.
To play (a snare drum, or a beat on or as if on a snare drum).

Origin

From Middle English snare, from Old English sneare (“snare, noose”), from Proto-West Germanic *snarhā, from Proto-Germanic *snarhǭ (“a sling; loop; noose”). Cognate with Old Norse snara. Also related to German Schnur and Dutch snaar, snoer.

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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