pitfall

noun

pit·​fall ˈpit-ˌfȯl 

1

: trap entry 1, snare

specifically : a pit flimsily covered or camouflaged and used to capture and hold animals or people

2

: a hidden or not easily recognized danger or difficulty

Synonyms

• booby trap
• catch
• catch-22
• gimmick
• gotcha
• hitch
• joker
• land mine
• snag

Examples of pitfall in a Sentence

buying a house can be full of pitfalls for the unwary

one of the pitfalls of ignorance is that people will also assume you're stupid

Recent Examples on the Web

To avoid these pitfalls, companies need to treat office redesign as a change management project—not just a facilities project. —Ryan Anderson, Forbes.com, 15 Apr. 2025

The pandemic exposed the pitfalls of American reliance on Chinese factories for an array of goods, from parts for ventilators to basic medicines. —Peter S. Goodman, New York Times, 14 Apr. 2025

However, the potential, and sometimes hilarious, pitfalls of not having the correct address were also pointed out. —David Faris, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Apr. 2025

So What’s the Endgame? To be sure, the potential pitfalls presented here are all worst-case scenarios. —Josef Adalian, Vulture, 10 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for pitfall

• aldol
• armhole
• atoll
• awol
• backhaul
• banal
• baseball
• befall
• cabal
• catchall
• cecal
• centrale

Kids Definition

pitfall

noun

pit·​fall ˈpit-ˌfȯl 

1

: trap entry 1 sense 1, snare

especially : a covered or camouflaged pit used to capture animals or people

2

: a danger or difficulty that is hidden or is not easily recognized