fascinate

[fas-uh-neyt]

verb (used with object)

fascinated, fascinating 

1. to attract and hold attentively by a unique power, personal charm, unusual nature, or some other special quality; enthrall.

   His natural vivacity fascinates and dominates his audience, leading them wherever he will.

   Synonyms: delight, charm, spellbind, enchant, bewitch

2. to arouse the interest or curiosity of.

   As I learned about ancient Egyptian religion, I found elements that fascinated me.

3. to transfix or deprive of the power of resistance, as through terror.

   The sight of the snake fascinated the rabbit.

4. Obsolete.,  to bewitch.

5. Obsolete.,  to cast under a spell by a look.

verb (used without object)

fascinated, fascinating 

1. to capture the interest or hold the attention.

fascinate

/ ˈfæsɪˌneɪt /

verb

1. to attract and delight by arousing interest or curiosity

   his stories fascinated me for hours

2. to render motionless, as with a fixed stare or by arousing terror or awe

3. archaic,  to put under a spell

Usage

A person can be fascinated by or with another person or thing. It is correct to speak of someone's fascination with a person or thing; one can also say a person or thing has a fascination for someone

Other Word Forms

• fascinative adjective
• fascination noun
• fascinatedly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of fascinate¹

First recorded in 1590–1600; from Latin fascinātus, past participle of fascināre “to bewitch, cast a spell on,” verbal derivative of fascinum “evil spell, bewitchment”

Word History and Origins

Origin of fascinate¹

C16: from Latin fascināre , from fascinum a bewitching

Example Sentences

“Japan’s content industry serves to enhance our nation’s international appeal by continuously fascinating people around the world,” Kimi Onoda said Monday in an interview with The Wall Street Journal and other media.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

And yet he’s fascinated by the people who just tried to destroy him, drawn to them, eventually peering through their window at a life he wasn’t invited to join.

Read more on Salon

Both the president and many of his key advisers and followers remain fascinated, if not obsessed, with the continent from which nearly all white Americans derive their ancestry.

Read more on Salon

"It's fascinating to design a task for chimps, and then try to adapt it for a toddler," she said.

Read more on Science Daily

And the Thanksgiving table itself is evolving in some fascinating ways.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• animate 
• attract 
• beguile 
• bewitch 
• charm 
• delight 
• enamor 
• enchant 
• engage 
• engross 
• enrapture 
• enthrall 
• entice 
• excite 
• infatuate 
• intoxicate 
• intrigue 
• mesmerize 
• overwhelm 
• please