A femme fatale (French for "deadly woman") is a mysterious and seductive woman with irresistible charms that lure their lovers into compromising, dangerous and deadly situations. Her ability to entrance and hypnotize her victims with a spell was in the earliest stories seen as being literally supernatural; hence, the femme fatale of today's world is still often described as having a power akin to an enchantress, seductress, vampire, witch, or demon.
There are numerous examples of femme fatales in mythology and legends, like Mohini, Lilith, Delilah, Salome and Jezebel, the Sirens, the Sphinx, Scylla, Aphrodite, Clytemnestra, Medea and Cleopatra.