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Social Media & Content Creation vocabulary · Content Strategy

Clickbait

Meaning in social media & content creation, with examples

/ˈklɪkbeɪt/nounCommon term

In social media & content creation, clickbait means: A title, thumbnail or caption that exaggerates or misleads to make people click, often promising more than the content delivers.

In Turkish: tık tuzağı, tıklama tuzağı, clickbait

How it is used

Usually negative: people call a video 'pure clickbait' when it disappoints. It also works as an adjective, as in a clickbait title. Platforms may limit misleading content, and viewers who feel tricked leave quickly.

Example sentences

  1. The title was clickbait; the 'secret' was just drinking more water.

  2. We want a title that makes people curious, not clickbait that hurts trust.

Common collocations

  • clickbait title
  • clickbait thumbnail
  • pure clickbait
  • avoid clickbait
  • thumbnailThe small preview image people see before they click on a video, used to attract attention and show what the video is about.
  • click-through rateThe percentage of people who click on something after seeing it, such as a thumbnail, a link or an ad.
  • engagement baitContent that pushes people to like, comment, share or tag friends only to increase engagement, such as 'Comment YES if you agree'.
  • hookThe first few seconds of a video or the first line of a post, designed to grab attention and make people keep watching or reading.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Content Strategy

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