spellbound

[spel-bound]

adjective

1. bound by or as if by a spell; enchanted, entranced, or fascinated.

   a spellbound audience.

spellbound

/ ˈspɛlˌbaʊnd /

adjective

1. having one's attention held as though one is bound by a spell

   a spellbound audience

Word History and Origins

Origin of spellbound¹

First recorded in 1790–1800; spell ² + -bound ¹

Example Sentences

The spellbound astronauts pinned themselves to the windows, the first humans to see the far side of our nearest celestial neighbour.

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“The Gentleman From Peru” takes place in a hotel where a group of friends are spellbound by a stranger’s tale of thwarted romance.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

My ticket out of suburbia came at a steep price, but I was on autopilot, spellbound and fueled by lust.

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Within a couple of minutes, it snakes all the way back to the entrance, populated by doting parents and spellbound preteens hoping they arrived in time.

Read more on New York Times

But Las Vegas seems spellbound by the Super Bowl, which is making its first appearance in a place that the N.F.L., not so long ago, avoided to the point of parody.

Read more on New York Times

Related Words

• amazed 
• bemused 
• breathless 
• captivated www.thesaurus.com
• enthralled 
• rapt