captivate
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
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to hold the attention of by fascinating; enchant
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an obsolete word for capture
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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captivationnoun
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captivatornoun
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captivativeadjective
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uncaptivatedadjective
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uncaptivativeadjective
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captivatinglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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captivatesimple
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captivatessimple
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have captivatedperfect
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has captivatedperfect
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am captivatingprogressive
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are captivatingprogressive
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is captivatingprogressive
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have been captivatingperfect progressive
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has been captivatingperfect progressive
Past
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captivatedsimple
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had captivatedperfect
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was captivatingprogressive
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were captivatingprogressive
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had been captivatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of captivate
First recorded in 1520–30; from Late Latin captīvātus (past participle of captīvāre “to take captive”), equivalent to Latin captīv(us) captive + -ātus -ate 1
Explanation
To captivate means to attract others, fascinating or enchanting them. Some people are able to captivate with wit and charm, others with physical beauty, still others with intelligence. Notice the similarity between the verbs captivate and capture. Both come ultimately from the Latin captus "taken captive." Still, while both words mean some sort of hold on someone, capture sounds harsh, as though a trap has been set, while captivate is a softer, more attractive word that suggests there might be a willingness to be caught. Robert S. McNamara, a former U.S. secretary of defense, said, "Coercion, after all, merely captures man. Freedom captivates him.”
Vocabulary lists containing captivate
The Diary of a Young Girl
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The Invention of Hugo Cabret
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The Boy Who Invented TV
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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.
See Examples For:
Marlowe said she is "thrilled to be joining the Radio 1 family" and hopes to "captivate your ears, not so much your eyes due to it being radio".
From BBC ● Jul. 15, 2026
Yet “The Vampire Lestat” asks viewers to believe something as audacious as a centuries-old vampire still being able to captivate people, launch a music career and inspire a movement.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 20, 2026
Americans didn’t actually land on the moon last week, despite some congratulations to the contrary, and Artemis II didn’t quite captivate the full attention of a country distracted by global strife and gas pumps.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 14, 2026
Marked by its stark staging and ritualistic intensity, the work remains one of the most enduring interpretations of Ravel's best-known work and continues to captivate audiences worldwide.
From Barron's ● Feb. 25, 2026
She strung humorous stories along the road like a bright wash and tried to captivate us.
From "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" by Maya Angelou
One of the first big names to sign with Unwell was Earle, who, according to Cooper at the time, has a unique presence that captivates audiences.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 14, 2026
It’s Wembanyama’s size that captivates most of all.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2025
Even when the story lacks, the visual splendor captivates, and Corbet brings intimate and layered performances out of his actors.
From Salon ● Feb. 28, 2025
Becky Hill has a magnificent stage presence and captivates the crowd.
From BBC ● May 24, 2024
They remain aloof from the modern temptation that captivates many in America’s middle class: the temptation to relieve the anonymity of public life by trying to make it intimate.
From "Hunger of Memory" by Richard Rodriguez
Europa has captivated scientists for decades because a vast ocean of liquid water may be concealed beneath its frozen surface.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 29, 2026
"His captivated, always improvised narration made that show the platonic ideal of natural history for me, and introduced a whole generation to the fascination of birds."
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
Even though they never worked together, Highsmith, like Hitchcock, was captivated by the subversive and the clandestine.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026
"It didn't matter. We were captivated by the countryside, the silence, the mountains," said 42‑year‑old billing specialist Lucia Hudecova.
From Barron's ● Jul. 3, 2026
Jaime did his best to seem indifferent, but in the end Miguel captivated him.
From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende
However, Mr. Starritt keeps his leads center stage and ensures that throughout their professional trials and personal ordeals they remain captivating presences and sympathetic enough to root for.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026
“Moana” became a box office hit, captivating audiences with catchy earworms from Lin-Manuel Miranda and a spunky young heroine who rejected the label of princess.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 9, 2026
Swiss great Roger Federer, watching from the Royal Box, was among the thousands inside Wimbledon's centre stage living each point of a captivating conclusion.
From BBC ● Jul. 6, 2026
BBC Sport looks at how important each player is to his team before what promises to be a captivating World Cup contest.
From BBC ● Jun. 26, 2026
We tell rags-to-riches stories because we find something captivating in the idea of a lone hero battling overwhelming odds.
From "Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell
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.
