seduce
/sɪˈdjuːs/
verb
Origin
Latin
seducere — to lead aside, take away, or mislead
Overview
Meaning Now
- To entice or persuade someone to engage in sexual activity.
- To lead away from proper conduct, principles, or loyalty; to beguile or tempt.
Literal older meaning
to lead aside
Language path
Latin → Old French → English
Earliest form
seduire
Earliest period
14th century
Journey
The term originally carried a broader sense of being led astray from moral, religious, or political duty. Over time, particularly in English, the connotation narrowed primarily to sexual persuasion, though the original 'misleading' sense persists in formal or literary contexts.
Evolution
- Latin
sēdūcere
“to lead aside”
From sē- 'apart' + dūcere 'to lead'.
- Old French
séduire
“to mislead, corrupt”
- Middle English
seduce
“to corrupt, mislead, or win over to illicit sexual behavior”
Entered English via Old French or directly from Latin during the late 14th century.
Connections
Word parts
se-
prefix
apart, away
duc
root
to lead
Related across languages
French
séduire
to seduce or to charm
Spanish
seducir
to seduce
Italian
sedurre
to seduce
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External references use DefinedTerm semantics.