temptationnoun
uk/tempˈteɪ.ʃən/us/tempˈteɪ.ʃən/B2 [ C or U ] the wish to do or have something that you know you should not do or have:
[ + to infinitive ] As a young actress, she resisted the temptation to move to Hollywood.
[ C ] something that makes you want to do or have something that you know you should not:
He knew it was wrong to steal, but the money just lying there was too great a temptation.
More examples
- I'm afraid I succumbed to temptation and had a piece of cheesecake.
- I finally surrendered to temptation, and ate the last remaining chocolate.
- It's very easy to yield to temptation and spend too much money.
- The temptation is to take more food than you need.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Feelings of desire
- appetite
- caprice
- compulsion
- covetous
- craving
- dream
- drive
- get itchy feet idiom
- hankering
- hunger
- impulse buy
- inclination
- longing
- lust
- urge
- vaulting
- whim
- wish
- yearning
- yen
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You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:
Attracting and tempting