decoy

Meanings

Noun

• A person or object meant to lure somebody into danger.
• A real or fake animal used by hunters to lure game.
• Deceptive military device used to draw enemy attention or fire away from a more important target.

Verb

• To lead into danger by artifice; to lure into a net or snare; to entrap.
• To act as, or use, a decoy.

Origin

• From Dutch de + kooi, literally "the cage". Possibly related to verb coy (which itself may have been influenced by decoy).