Word or idiom for suggesting that someone do something that would damage that person if they actually carried out the suggestion

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I am looking for a word or short idiom that describes the situation when subliminally suggesting, or even slightly persuading, to someone that they do something that would hurt that person themself. An example of such an act can be found in the TV show House of Cards, where Francis Underwood casually places a razor blade on a bathtub's rim while his colleague Peter Russo takes a bath.

My first idea of a matching phrase was "to hold a pistol to someone's head", but I don't think it properly describes such a situation.

Best Answer

Egging someone on addresses the situation where verbal persuasion is used.

egg [someone] on [phrasal verb]:

to urge or encourage (someone) to do something that is usually foolish or dangerous

  • He continued to take off his clothes while the crowd egged him on.

[Merriam-Webster]

  • The girl walked along the top of a narrow uneven wall, seemingly not worried about the 30ft drop below her, after being egged on by a group of three friends who watched from the ground.

[Jordan Seward; Daily Mail Jun 1 2020]

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