Meaning & use

temptation

noun·Everyday

A strong desire to do something, especially something unwise, forbidden, or harmful.

See it in a sentence

He resisted the temptation to check his phone during the exam.

The smell of fresh cookies was too great a temptation to ignore.

A note on using this word

Temptation often implies an inner conflict between desire and better judgment, unlike urge, which is more neutral.

Words with a similar meaning

urgeenticement

Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.

Words with an opposite meaning

restraint

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