mesmeric
Americanadjective
-
holding (someone) as if spellbound
-
of or relating to mesmerism
Other Word Forms
- mesmerically adverb
- unmesmeric adjective
- unmesmerically adverb
Etymology
Origin of mesmeric
First recorded in 1820–30; mesmer(ism) + -ic
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.
Yet, there’s a distinctly mesmeric quality to these modern melodramas regardless.
From Salon • Mar. 19, 2026
There’s a distinctly mesmeric quality to these modern melodramas.
From Salon • Mar. 19, 2026
However, back in the shop, amid the mesmeric hum of sanders and drum fans, a thought dawned on him: “What would have happened to all the knowledge if I had died?”
From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 16, 2025
“A sublime writer. … This book is a mesmeric celebration of a boy who died too soon, a mother’s love and her resilience.”
From New York Times • Apr. 18, 2024
Singing, and the thought of doing so in front of an audience, was another mesmeric way of whittling hours.
From "In Cold Blood" by Truman Capote
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.
