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Prepositions after verbs

Lure by, lure to or lure into?

Use lure to for destinations and lure into for actions or situations. Lure by is not a standard active pattern.

Quick answer

Using prepositions with lure

Lure to means attract someone to a place or activity. Lure into means persuade someone to enter a situation or do something. Lure by is uncommon as an active pattern; by usually appears in passive structures such as be lured by.

The shop lured customers to the new branch.
He was lured into a risky investment.
Tourists were lured by cheap flights.

Choose the pattern by meaning

These forms are not interchangeable. Choose the construction by meaning, not by which preposition appears most often.

1
lure to + place/activity

Where is someone attracted?

Use lure to for destinations, events, or activities.

Advertisements lured visitors to the festival.
2
lure into + situation/action

What was someone persuaded to do?

Use lure into for traps, agreements, crimes, or other situations.

She was lured into signing the contract.
The scam lured people into sharing personal data.
3
be lured by + attraction

What attracted someone?

By is natural mainly in passive structures.

They were lured by promises of easy money.
4
lure away from + place/person

Moving someone away

Use away from when someone is attracted away from something else.

The offer lured workers away from smaller companies.

See the difference in context

The same subject can take different constructions because each sentence answers a different question.

Construction
Example
Meaning
lure to
The campaign lured tourists to the island.
Attracts someone to a destination.
lure into
He was lured into gambling.
Persuades someone into a situation or action.
lure by
Active use such as They lured by discounts is not standard.
Use be lured by in passive clauses.
be lured by
Customers were lured by low prices.
Names the attraction in a passive structure.

Common mistakes

Some combinations appear in real text but do not mean what learners often assume.

Using lure by as an active pattern

By usually belongs in passive constructions with lure.

✕ They lured by free samples. ✓ They lured customers with free samples.

Confusing lure to and lure into

To focuses on destination; into focuses on involvement.

✕ He was lured to fraud. ✓ He was lured into fraud.

Quick practice

Choose the expression that matches the intended meaning.

1. The ad lured shoppers ___ the website.
2. She was lured ___ investing all her savings.
3. Tourists were lured ___ the warm weather.

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Frequently asked questions

Can lure be followed directly by an object?

Yes. Example: The lights lured insects.

Is lure by ever correct?

Yes, mainly in passive structures such as be lured by something.

What preposition is used for traps or schemes?

Into is the usual choice: lured into a scam.

label, as, label, with lag behind, in, from, on or by? "land on" or "land in"? languish in, at, on, for or near? last for, from, until, in or through? "latch onto" or "latch on"? laugh at, with, about, in or for? launch in, by, on, at or into? "lay on" or "lay in"? lead to, by, up, in or from? "leak to" or "leak from"? lean on, towards, against, toward or to?

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