entranced
Americanadjective
-
filled with delight or wonder; enraptured; captivated.
The two last songs soulfully bring the album to a lilting climax, leaving the entranced listener clamoring for more.
-
put into a trance; hypnotized.
She honestly believes she spoke to her dead mother with the help of an entranced medium.
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of entranced
First recorded in 1590–1600; entrance 2 + -ed 2 for the adjective senses; entrance 2 + -ed 1 for the verb sense
Explanation
If you're entranced, you are charmed and mesmerized by something. An entranced theater-goer might gasp out loud when something scary happens on stage. When you're entranced by something, it's got you under its spell. In fact, the earliest definition of the word was "put into a trance" or "put under a spell," with the roots en-, "put in," and trance, "state of suspense" or "state of insensibility to mundane things," from the Old French word transe, "fear of coming evil." The meaning of entranced has shifted over the years to be more positive — more "charmed" than "cursed."
Vocabulary lists containing entranced
The Incredibly Human Henson Blayze
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Minecraft: The Island
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Max in the House of Spies
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
How Scotland, and other parts of the world, became entranced by the fairytale only for the reality of sport's essential brutality to hit them square between the eyes at Celtic Park on denouement day.
From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026
Four-year-old Juni Wahab was entranced by the sight of the swallows and cormorants swooping low overhead and the rushing twists of water.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 13, 2026
That becomes a problem when, after one of their weekly lunches, the three friends stroll around a furniture store, where Camille is entranced by a gorgeous chair she can’t possibly afford.
From Salon ● Feb. 18, 2026
Since Bad Bunny released his debut album in 2018, he has entranced millions of fans who don’t know a lick of Spanish.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 5, 2026
His eyes were entranced, and he could sense the wary, watchful evil outside the brush house; he could feel the dark creeping things waiting for him to go out into the night.
From "The Pearl" by John Steinbeck
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions 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.
