mesmerized
Americanadjective
-
in a hypnotic or trancelike state; hypnotized.
“I could create the odor of any kind of fruit and make a mesmerized person taste and smell it,” wrote 19th-century psychic Phineas Quimby.
-
having the attention completely absorbed; fascinated, captivated, or spellbound.
At our first annual poetry slam, 28 students wielded their verbal prowess in front of a mesmerized audience of over 300.
verb
Other Word Forms
- unmesmerized adjective
Etymology
Origin of mesmerized
First recorded in 1825–35; mesmerize ( def. ) + -ed 2 ( def. ) for the adjective senses; mesmerize ( def. ) + -ed 1 ( def. ) for the verb sense
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.
Walking down Sixth Avenue in New York recently, I was mesmerized by a Salvation Army dude with his red donation bucket dancing to Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 21, 2025
When you were a kid and you saw images of those artists — I was mesmerized.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 5, 2025
“Kathy’s such a magnetic performer that there were some residents who would start out playing their background role, and then Kathy would start her dialogue, and they were mesmerized and watching her,” Friedland says.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 25, 2025
Who wasn’t mesmerized by last week’s epic, if profoundly embarrassing, catfight between Elon Musk and Donald Trump?
From Salon • Jun. 8, 2025
Colonel Meecham chewed gum belligerently and Ben watched the white lines until he was mesmerized by their repetitiveness.
From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy
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.
