Temptings

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. To entice someone into doing something; to attract or allure with the promise of pleasure or reward; to stimulate a desire or interest in someone for an action or choice
2. To draw someone toward engaging in a particular action; to offer something appealing that may lead to a moral choice; to provoke curiosity or want in a situation
3. To lead an individual toward a decision or action by presenting something desirable; to invite a person to consider an option with potential pleasure; to stir an inclination to engage in a forbidden or risky behavior

Etymology: "Temptings" is simply the plural of "tempting," the present participle used as a noun. Its history therefore runs through the verb "tempt," which came into English from Old French "temter," itself from Latin "temptare," meaning to test, try, or handle. The sense of testing someone's resolve by offering an attractive lure is what gave the verb its moral edge. Because "tempting" is a noun form, it names the acts or inducements themselves: each individual enticement offered to someone. Plural "temptings" therefore refers to several such lures, the things that pull a person toward a choice they might later regret, or that simply stir curiosity and desire.

Synonyms: temptations, enticements

Antonyms: repulsions