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attraction

[uh-trak-shuhn]
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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR attraction ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

the act, power, or property of attracting.
attractive quality; magnetic charm; fascination; allurement; enticement: the subtle attraction of her strange personality.
a person or thing that draws, attracts, allures, or entices: The main attraction was the after-dinner speaker.
a characteristic or quality that provides pleasure; attractive feature: The chief attractions of the evening were the good drinks and witty conversation.
Physics. the electric or magnetic force that acts between oppositely charged bodies, tending to draw them together.
an entertainment offered to the public.

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RELATED WORDS

attractiveness, allure, appeal, interest, enthrallment, bait, draw, endearment, tendency, gravitation, temptation, come-on, seduction, enchantment, allurement, inducement, inclination, lure, fascination, magnetism

Nearby words

  1. attorney-in-fact,
  2. attotesla,
  3. attract,
  4. attractancy,
  5. attractant,
  6. attraction sphere,
  7. attractive,
  8. attractive nuisance,
  9. attractively,
  10. attractor

Origin of attraction

1375–1425; late Middle English attraccioun (< Anglo-French) < Medieval Latin attractiōn- (stem of attractiō). See attract, -ion
Related formsat·trac·tion·al·ly, adverbre·at·trac·tion, nounsu·per·at·trac·tion, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for attraction

British Dictionary definitions for attraction

attraction

noun

the act, power, or quality of attracting
a person or thing that attracts or is intended to attract
a force by which one object attracts another, such as the gravitational or electrostatic force
a change in the form of one linguistic element caused by the proximity of another element
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for attraction

attraction

n.

late 14c., from French attraction, from Latin attractionem (nominative attractio) "a drawing together," noun of action from past participle stem of attrahere (see attract). Originally a medical word, "absorption by the body;" meaning "action of drawing to" is from 1540s (again medical); extended to magnetic, then figuratively to personal (c.1600) qualities. Meaning "a thing which draws a crowd, interesting or amusing exhibition" is from 1829, a sense that developed in English and soon transferred to the French equivalent of the word.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Medicine definitions for attraction

attraction

[ə-trăk′shən]

n.

A force acting mutually between particles of matter to draw them together and to resist their separation.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.