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oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com:
(1) He was tempted into a life of crime.
(2) I was tempted to take the day off.

Does (1) mean (1a) or (1b)?:
(1a) A life of crime attracted him but we don't know whether he got involved in crime or not.
(1b) He got involved in crime.

Does (2) mean (2a) or (2b)?:
(2a) Taking the day off attracted him but we don't know whether he did it or not.
(2b) He took the day off.

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  • 3
    Your first example implies he did succumb to the temptation (and lived a life of crime), but the second one is different - I'd normally assume he resisted the temptation (he stayed at work). But this is just inference in both cases. Being "tempted" literally says nothing whatsoever about one's actual reaction.
    – FumbleFingers
    Commented Apr 26, 2023 at 23:09
  • @FumbleFingers Please write answers as answers, not as comments.
    – MJ713
    Commented Apr 27, 2023 at 1:56
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    @MJ713: I closevoted. The literal meaning of "tempt" is easily established from dictionaries. The actual likely result depends on context. Of course, there are implications to using various prepositions - tempted into implies succumbing more strongly than tempted by, for example. But that's more than I wanted to get involved in.
    – FumbleFingers
    Commented Apr 27, 2023 at 3:27
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    @FumbleFingers I disagree that this is answerable by a dictionary because dictionaries don't tend to include changes in meaning due to prepositions. Though it's more than you wanted to get involved in, I believe that's the essential question here, not the definition of "tempt", which the OP has obviously already looked up.
    – gotube ♦
    Commented Apr 27, 2023 at 17:18
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    @gotube: You're quite right, and I've retracted my closevote accordingly. It was lazy of me to only think of context + the literal dictionary definition of "tempt". I wouldn't have made that mistake if the OP had asked about the difference between 1) I was tempted to take the day off and 2) I was tempted into taking the day off. (Answer: 1 ... but I didn't, 2 ... so I did). (But the OP could hardly be expected to know that! :)
    – FumbleFingers
    Commented Apr 27, 2023 at 18:51

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To be tempted into doing something means to actually do it because of the temptation.

To merely be tempted to do something (without "into") only means wanting to do something. It doesn't mean they did it.

So the answers are 1b and 2a

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