Meaning of “trap” in the English Dictionary

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"trap" in English

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uk /træp/ us /træp/

B2 [ S ] a dangerous or unpleasant situation which you have got into and from which it is difficult or impossible to escape:

The undercover agents went to the rendezvous knowing that it might be a trap.

She's too smart to fall into the trap of working without pay.

More examples

Don't fall into the trap of thinking you can learn a foreign language without doing any work.
His foot was caught in the jaws of the trap.
We set a trap and they walked right into it.
They put rabbit traps all over the wood.
We set traps to try to control the mice.

Thesaurus: synonyms and related words

You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:

› [ C ] slang a mouth:

Oh, shut your trap (= stop talking) - I don't want to hear it anymore!

It's a secret, so keep your trap shut (= don't say anything about it).

Thesaurus: synonyms and related words

› [ C ] a light carriage with two wheels pulled by a horse, used especially in the past

Thesaurus: synonyms and related words

uk /træp/ us /træp/ -pp-

› to catch an animal in a trap:

› to keep something such as heat or water in one place, especially because it is useful:

A greenhouse stays warm because the glass traps the heat of the sun.

be trapped

B2 If someone or something is trapped, that person or thing is unable to move or escape from a place or situation:

The two men died when they were trapped in a burning building.

Fire officers used cutting equipment to free his legs, which were trapped under a steel beam.

figurative Jack left the job after ten years because he was beginning to feel trapped.

be trapped into (doing) sth

› to be forced or tricked into doing something that you do not want to do:

In his book, Holden speculates that Shakespeare was an unfaithful husband who was trapped into marriage.

She had been trapped into saying something she did not mean.

› to bring a football that is moving or falling through the air under control using your feet:

More examples

She went to the aid of a man trapped in his car.
Firefighters helped to dig out the people trapped in the snowdrift.
Rescuers are doing everything that is humanly possible to free the trapped people.
Jane is trapped in a joyless marriage.
We could hear the moans of someone trapped under the rubble.