Inveigle

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(pronounced in-vay-gul or in-vee-gul) verb

Definition

1. to win over by flattery, deception, or cajolery; entice; ensnare. 2. to acquire or obtain by insincere talk, guile, cleverness, or inventiveness; finagle.

Main Example

• In its January 9 edition, The Wall Street Journal devoted an entire page to chronicling the sequence of events that had led to the historic assault on the U.S. Capitol three days earlier. The detailed chronology clearly established that it wasn't just the fiery speeches on the morning of January 6 that inveigled thousands of Trump supporters into attacking the Capitol but instead a sustained months-long campaign of falsehoods by the former president and several of his acolytes including Rudy Giuliani, Michael Flynn, and Sidney Powell.

Workplace Examples

• Yeah, I just heard that Kara had a one-hour conversation with the executive VP over lunch or something. I'd love to know how someone who is a recent hire and in an entry level job could inveigle her way into having that sort of a long one-on-one with the #2 exec of this mammoth corporation.
• I can't seem to recall how I got inveigled into helping Ethan with his project--perhaps I succumbed to his flattery or something--but, at any rate, it's something I am beginning to regret. It's just too much work...a case of having bitten off more than I can possibly chew, with no prospect of any sort of reward.

Other Examples

• this author telling a fellow Toastmaster: "No, I don"t expect that guest, Jessica, to join the club. I get the impression she came to our meeting somewhat reluctantly, inveigled by her dad into visiting a couple of Toastmaster clubs to improve her public speaking skills, but no, I don't believe she is really all that motivated."
• talking about his recent vacation, a colleague saying: "Yeah, as I was saying earlier, it was a big disappointment. There's no way I would have gone to that part of the world, were it not for all that cajoling and inveigling by my son and daughter."
• someone trying to inveigle a free ticket to a sold-out rock concert; someone without the requisite education or experience inveigling herself or himself to a key advisory position in the White House; inveigling a neighbor into becoming your jogging partner
• a conman inveigling his way into an elderly woman's inner circle with the aim to eventually be the sole heir to her considerable estate
• a jury finding so-called Swami Kriyananda (aka James Donald Walters) guilty of inveigling several of his female followers into having sex with him

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