riveting
Britishadjective
Explanation
A rivet is a fastener that holds something closed or down, and something riveting keeps you glued to your seat and grabs your attention. Sometimes a movie is so riveting that not even free popcorn refills can lure you away. Riveting is an adjective for things that really draw you in, like a book you read in one sitting or a song you turn up so you can hear every lyric. Beautiful scenes are riveting, but terrible and ugly things are also riveting, like the site of an accident you can't stop looking at. Words from a teacher or actor have a riveting effect when they're full of impact and interest, and when you exaggerate a story for your best friend, that's riveting too.
Vocabulary lists containing riveting
100 SAT words Beginning with "R"
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Front Desk
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I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In an interview with De Los, RaiNao talks about her very personal inspiration for “Marcriá,” the joy of collaborating with her musical heroes and her biggest lesson learned in these riveting last two years.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 4, 2026
The journey there is typically far more riveting.
From Salon • May 30, 2026
Turner, an inveterate traveler, was rarely without a sketchbook in hand, and manifold drawings and watercolors, many dating from his continental expeditions, underscore his riveting sense of color and drama in nature.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 4, 2026
Being the entertainment capital of the world, we won’t deny that it’s riveting to watch video after video of ICE officers slipping on, well, ice like some klutzy Keystone Kops short.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 15, 2026
Oh good, he’s not so full of himself that he thinks his major is riveting stuff.
From "What If It's Us" by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
