mesmerize
Americanverb (used with object)
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to completely capture the attention of; spellbind; fascinate.
This young pianist has mesmerized audiences with her incredible technique and range of musical expression.
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to hypnotize or put into a trancelike state; cause (someone) to be open to the power of suggestion or unable to act on their own.
According to ancient myth, the song of the sea nymphs mesmerized sailors, drawing them into disastrous waters.
-
to cause or compel through fascination or by hypnotizing.
Advertising can easily mesmerize us into thinking that wealth is the same as money and possessions.
In this game scene, the warriors do not know they’ve been mesmerized into the service of the enemy.
verb
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a former word for hypnotize
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to hold (someone) as if spellbound
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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mesmerizesimple
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mesmerizessimple
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have mesmerizedperfect
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has mesmerizedperfect
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am mesmerizingprogressive
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are mesmerizingprogressive
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is mesmerizingprogressive
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have been mesmerizingperfect progressive
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has been mesmerizingperfect progressive
Past
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mesmerizedsimple
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had mesmerizedperfect
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was mesmerizingprogressive
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were mesmerizingprogressive
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had been mesmerizingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of mesmerize
First recorded in 1820–30; back formation from mesmerism
Explanation
You meet someone and you can’t take your eyes off them, like you are connected by an invisible cord and can’t break free. Those kinds of people have the power to mesmerize, holding your attention like you’re under hypnosis. The word mesmerize comes from the last name of 18th century German physician Franz Mesmer, who believed that all people and objects are pulled together by a strong magnetic force, later called mesmerism. If you ever start to feel mesmerized, maybe it’s because you find someone fascinating, or maybe you’ve been hypnotized by a magician. Hard to tell from here.
Vocabulary lists containing mesmerize
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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.
See Examples For:
Stripped of his good looks and seductive accent, Colin Farrell still managed to mesmerize in “The Penguin,” which not only resuscitated an exhausted genre but took it to a new level of storytelling.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 15, 2025
Still there is the natural arm talent that can mesmerize with effortless form and quick release.
From Washington Times ● Aug. 18, 2023
This was the first domestic event since CNN’s creation in 1980 to mesmerize the nation with saturation coverage by cable television.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 7, 2023
Of course, the Skywalker Saga never called attention to that part, preferring to mesmerize children and the young at heart with philosophical musings about not giving into hate and lifting boulders with focused thought.
From Salon ● Sep. 23, 2022
Garvey’s dance seemed to mesmerize Peter, who watched closely, following every movement.
From "Touching Spirit Bear" by Ben Mikaelsen
Paul McCartney still sells out stadiums and mesmerizes audiences with his charm, charisma and the deepest songbook in pop, but at 83, his voice is more strain than sweetness.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 17, 2026
But what really mesmerizes are the windows, and the speculations they invite about who lives behind them.
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 9, 2022
“The painting completely mesmerized me, and it mesmerizes almost anyone who sees it.”
From New York Times ● May 4, 2022
RELATED: Tilda Swinton mesmerizes as a woman possessed in Pedro Almodóvar striking take on "The Human Voice"
From Salon ● Apr. 1, 2022
His mind is satisfied with that answer; he gets down his Annex and does an incantation or two, and that mesmerizes his spirit and puts that to sleep—brings it peace.
From Christian Science by Twain, Mark
“Son of Sam just mesmerized everybody for a long period,” recalled Michael Oreskes, then a reporter for the Daily News, whereas “LaGuardia was a one-time thing that then nobody could explain, nobody could figure out.”
From Slate ● Jul. 7, 2026
“It may be,” Mr. Meese says, “that he became mesmerized with the—what did they call it? What was the name of the woman who was the reporter that wrote about the Supreme Court?”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 2026
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
Onlookers are invited to be mesmerized by the fuchsia flames of Gwi-Ma’s realm as the movie’s hooky synth pop bounces in the foreground.
From Salon ● Dec. 18, 2025
The metamorphosis was bedazzling, and I was mesmerized by her exquisite face, her dark luminous eyes, her appreciative smile.
From "Summer of the Mariposas" by Guadalupe García McCall
His moves and fakes, practice-perfected and charmingly earthbound, make him a mesmerizing threat.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 26, 2026
There are plenty of movies that are objectively glacial, yet mesmerizing.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 14, 2026
The Booked Babes fall quiet as they thumb through their astrology booklets, reading about destiny, transfixed by the mesmerizing promise of inevitable fate.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 4, 2026
Three original songs and a mesmerizing live performance from Lady Gaga!
From Salon ● May 1, 2026
It was so mesmerizing to see plain cupcakes become beautifully decorated within seconds.
From "From the Desk of Zoe Washington" by Janae Marks
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.
