rise to the bait

rise to the bait

to react to something that someone has said in exactly the way that they wanted you to react, usually by becoming angry. Anthony keeps saying that women make bad drivers but I refuse to rise to the bait. (often negative)

See also: bait, rise

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rise to the bait

to react to something that was said just to make you react. Tony keeps saying that women are bad drivers, but I refuse to rise to the bait and don't answer him.

Etymology: based on the idea that a fish will swim up toward bait (= small amounts of food) on a hook and get caught

See also: bait, rise