Word of the Day

: November 25, 2006

inveigle

verb in-VAY-gul

What It Means

1 : to win over by wiles : entice

2 : to acquire by ingenuity or flattery : wangle

inveigle in Context

Not wanting to attend the gallery opening by herself, Alice tried to inveigle Glen into accompanying her.

Did You Know?

"Inveigle," a word that dates from the 16th century, refers to the act of using clever talk, trickery, or flattery to either persuade somebody to do something or to obtain something through a similar method. What could such a word possibly have to do with blindness? "Inveigle" came to English from the Anglo-French verb "enveegler," which means "to blind or hoodwink someone," from the adjective "enveugle," meaning "blind." "Enveugle" derives from the Medieval Latin "ab oculis," a phrase which literally translates to "lacking eyes." You might say that a person who is inveigled to do or give up something is too "blinded" by someone's words to know that he or she is being tricked.

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.