bait

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

• noun Food or other lure placed on a hook or in a trap and used in the taking of fish, birds, or other animals.
• noun Something, such as a worm, used for this purpose.
• noun An enticement, temptation, or provocation.
• intransitive verb To place a lure in (a trap) or on (a fishing hook).
• intransitive verb To entice or provoke, especially by trickery or strategy.
• intransitive verb To set dogs upon (a chained animal, for example) for sport.
• intransitive verb To taunt or torment (someone), as with persistent insults or ridicule.
• intransitive verb To feed (an animal), especially on a journey.
• intransitive verb To stop for food or rest during a trip.

from The Century Dictionary.

• noun etc. An obsolete form of bate, etc.
• noun Any substance, as an attractive morsel of food, placed on a hook or in a trap to allure fish or other animals to swallow the hook or to enter the trap, and thereby be caught; specifically, worms, small fishes, etc., used in fishing.
• noun An allurement; enticement; temptation.
• noun A portion of food and drink; a slight or informal repast. Refreshment taken on a journey, by man or beast.
• noun A luncheon; food eaten by a laborer during his shift.
• noun A halt for refreshment or rest in the course of a journey.
• noun A refreshment or refresher.
• noun A hasty meal; a snack.
• noun Short for whitebait.
• . To cause to bite; set on (a dog) to bite or worry (another animal).
• To provoke and harass by setting on dogs; set a dog or dogs to worry or fight with for sport, as an animal that is hampered or confined: as, to bait a bull or a bear.
• To set upon, as a dog upon a captive animal; hence, to harass in any way; annoy; nag; badger; worry.
• To feed; give a portion of food and drink to, especially upon a journey: as, to bait horses.
• To put a bait on or in: as, to bait a hook, line, snare, or trap.
• . To allure by a bait; catch; captivate: as, “to bait fish,”
• . To act in a worrying or harassing manner.
• To take food; feed.
• To stop at an inn, while on a journey, to feed the horses, or for rest and refreshment.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

• transitive verb To provoke and harass; esp., to harass or torment for sport.
• transitive verb To give a portion of food and drink to, upon the road.
• transitive verb To furnish or cover with bait, as a trap or hook.
• intransitive verb To stop to take a portion of food and drink for refreshment of one's self or one's beasts, on a journey.
• noun Any substance, esp. food, used in catching fish, or other animals, by alluring them to a hook, snare, inclosure, or net.
• noun Anything which allures; a lure; enticement; temptation.
• noun A portion of food or drink, as a refreshment taken on a journey; also, a stop for rest and refreshment.
• noun A light or hasty luncheon.
• noun (Zoöl.) a crustacean of the genus Hippa found burrowing in sandy beaches. See Anomura.
• intransitive verb To flap the wings; to flutter as if to fly; or to hover, as a hawk when she stoops to her prey.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

• verb obsolete, intransitive To flap the wings; to flutter as if to fly; or to hover, as a hawk when she stoops to her prey.
• verb transitive To set dogs on (an animal etc.) to bite or worry; to attack with dogs, especially for sport.
• verb transitive To intentionally annoy, torment, or threaten by constant rebukes or threats; to harass.
• verb transitive To feed and water (a horse or other animal), especially during a journey.
• verb intransitive Of a horse or other animal: to take food, especially during a journey.
• verb transitive To attract with bait; to entice.
• verb transitive To affix bait to a fishing hook or fishing line.
• noun Any substance, especially food, used in catching fish, or other animals, by alluring them to a hook, snare, trap, or net.
• noun Food containing poison or a harmful additive to kill animals that are pests.
• noun Anything which allures; a lure; enticement; temptation.
• noun A portion of food or drink, as a refreshment taken on a journey; also, a stop for rest and refreshment.