[f. TICE v.] An act of enticing, an enticement; spec. a stroke at croquet, or ‘ball’ (bowled) at cricket (see quots. 1888, 1901), which tempts or entices the opponent to take aim.
1874. J. D. Heath, Croquet-Player, 55. It is admissible to give a double shot as a ‘tice,’ so as to tempt him to shoot where his missing would give you the dead ball.
1888. Steel & Lyttelton, Cricket (Badm.), iii. 132. In the first over he [the bowler] should try a ‘yorker.’ This ball, called in days gone by a ‘tice,’ an abbreviation of ‘entice,’ is certainly one of the most deadly balls that can be bowled.
1900. A. Lillie, Croquet up to Date, 4. The length of the tice should depend on the trueness of the ground.
1901. N. & Q., 9th Ser. VIII. 284/2. It might meet the requirements of present-day definition … if one classed a ‘tice’ as a lob, or to be more precise, an underhand yorker.
b. Comb. tice-basket, a decoy basket.
1884. 19th Cent., Feb., 245. Fish … falling freely to the native net and tice-basket.
