Beguile

//bɪˈɡaɪl// verb

verb ·Common ·High school level

Definitions

Verb
  1. 1
    To deceive or delude (using guile). transitive

    "And as wililye as thoſe ſhrewes that beguyle hym haue holpe hym to inuolue and intryke the matter: I ſhall vſe ſo playn and open a way therin, that euery man ſhall well ſee the trouth."

  2. 2
    attract; cause to be enamored wordnet
  3. 3
    To charm, delight or captivate. transitive

    "1864 November 21, Abraham Lincoln (signed) or John Hay, letter to Mrs. Bixby in Boston I feel how weak and fruitless must be any words of mine which should attempt to beguile you from the grief of a loss so overwhelming."

  4. 4
    influence by slyness wordnet
  5. 5
    To cause (time) to seem to pass quickly, by way of pleasant diversion. transitive

    "We beguiled the hours away."

Synonyms

All synonyms
juggleallureamuseappealattractbamboozle

Antonyms

All antonyms
enrage

Example

More examples

"As is the wont of seamen, to beguile their toil one of them sang a song, in the chorus of which the others joined at intervals."

Etymology

From Middle English begilen, begylen; equivalent to be- + guile. Compare Middle Dutch begilen (“to beguile”). Doublet of bewile.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.