a snare: a baited trap that catches its prey, and so anything that lures a person or a people into sin, defeat, or death
The word names a hunter's trap, the small triggered kind that is baited and set to snap shut the instant a bird or animal takes the lure. Only a couple of places in the Old Testament use it for the physical device. Almost everywhere else it is a picture.
Its most frequent use is a warning. Foreign gods, carved images, and treaties with the surrounding nations are said to "become a snare" to Israel: they promise something desirable and then close on those who reach for them, drawing the people into unfaithfulness and ruin. What looks harmless is the bait.
A second stream is deadly danger. Enemies hide traps for the innocent, and death itself is pictured as a hunter whose snares close around a victim. To be caught is to be as good as dead.
A third stream turns the trap inward. A person's own rash words, hasty vows, or fear of other people spring a snare on the very one who speaks or fears. Against all of these, the teaching of the wise and the fear of the Lord are what keep a person clear.