fascinating
Americanadjective
adjective
-
arousing great interest
-
enchanting or alluring
a fascinating woman
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of fascinating
First recorded in 1640–50; fascinat(e) + -ing 2
Explanation
Something fascinating really captures your interest: you can't take your eyes off it or can't wait to learn more about it. To a sports fan, a basketball game may be fascinating, including the smallest details, like who got the most assists and what kind of defense was played. Music fans find concerts fascinating. Many people think politics is fascinating — they can't get enough TV and magazine stories about the latest political events. Whatever you think is fascinating, it must really hold your attention: you always want to see and know more.
Vocabulary lists containing fascinating
12 More Interesting Ways to Say "interesting"
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Pay Attention! Synonyms for "Interesting"
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From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
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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.
"It's an incredible tradition," says Alsop, adding it is the sort of eccentric event that "makes the UK such a fascinating place".
From BBC • May 22, 2026
“Across the cohorts we track, nearly all were lower, with two fascinating exceptions,” he writes.
From Barron's • May 20, 2026
“When I think of L.A., I think of Ruscha’s work, which has a fascinating sense of the mundane and how it relates to the city’s grandeur,” Anderson wrote in the notes.
From Los Angeles Times • May 15, 2026
Among these is a truly fascinating man, Boris Berezovsky, who, unlike Baranov, is not fictitious.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 14, 2026
When she finally spoke, her low, accented voice resembled the moaning of Grandmother’s favorite fortune-teller, frightening and fascinating all at once.
From "In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson" by Bette Bao Lord
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.
