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Synonyms

persuasion

American  
[per-swey-zhuhn] / pərˈsweɪ ʒən /

noun

  1. the act of persuading or seeking to persuade.

  2. the power of persuading; persuasive force.

  3. the state or fact of being persuaded or convinced.

  4. a deep conviction or belief.

  5. a form or system of belief, especially religious belief.

    the Quaker persuasion.

  6. a sect, group, or faction holding or advocating a particular belief, idea, ideology, etc..

    Several of the people present are of the socialist persuasion.

  7. Facetious. kind or sort.


persuasion British  
/ pəˈsweɪʒən /

noun

  1. the act of persuading or of trying to persuade

  2. the power to persuade

  3. the state of being persuaded; strong belief

  4. an established creed or belief, esp a religious one

  5. a sect, party, or faction

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Related Words

See advice.

Other Word Forms

  • prepersuasion noun
  • self-persuasion noun

Etymology

Origin of persuasion

First recorded in 1350–1400; late Middle English, from Latin persuāsiōn-, stem of persuāsiō; equivalent to per- + suasion; replacing Middle English persuacioun, from Middle French persuacion, from Latin, as above

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.

But the Fed chair governs by persuasion, not decree.

From Barron's

The staunch Republican was less reticent about his political persuasions and was a guest at President George W Bush's inauguration in 2001.

From BBC

The fandom transcends nationality, religion, age and political persuasion, she said.

From Los Angeles Times

Sitrick writes that if gentle persuasion doesn’t work to convince Ferguson to retract her statement, then “we need to turn up the heat even to the point of sending her a draft defamation lawsuit.”

From Los Angeles Times

“Governments of all jurisdictions and political persuasions have massively grown their respective footprints on the economy by substantially lifting spending,” said Stephen Walters, chief economist at Optimal Economics.

From The Wall Street Journal