persuasion

American  

[per-sway-zhuhn] / pərˈsweɪ ʒən /

noun

• persuasions
  plural

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.

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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

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Synonym Usage

See advice.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• prepersuasion
  noun
• self-persuasion
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• persuasions
  plural

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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

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Explanation

Persuasion is something meant to get you to do or believe something. If you’re not sure you want to go somewhere, your friend might use persuasion to talk you into it. Being of a certain persuasion or belief, means you already have your mind made up, as a person who is of the Democratic persuasion or the Lutheran persuasion. Another meaning for persuasion is the act of influencing someone to do something or to change their mind. For example, good salespeople use persuasion to get people to buy things, just as children use persuasion to get permission to do certain things.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

persuasion persuasions

Vegetables of nearly every persuasion happily disappear into the mix.

From Salon ● Sep. 6, 2026

By the time of her death, she was said to be one of the few things that Americans of most every persuasion could agree on.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 25, 2026

“There’s lots of research showing that just simple reminders are really effective in getting people to save. It’s not a persuasion method. It’s really just ‘I brought this to the top of my mind.’

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026

The only event that seemed more oriented toward entertainment than persuasion was the log-cutting competition.

From Slate ● Jul. 1, 2026

These scholars present science as being about rhetoric, persuasion and authority because the symmetry principle obliges them to assume that that is all it can be about.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

People of all political persuasions should be outraged that this happened—and plenty were—but they should not be surprised.

From Slate ● Jul. 7, 2026

I have no problem with Hilton campaigning at a Mexican restaurant — it’s a political trope practiced by candidates of all persuasions.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 13, 2026

Their finding confirms what we already know about this year: A lot is riding on this year’s midterms, regardless of political persuasions.

From MarketWatch ● Apr. 13, 2026

Members of Congress — seemingly of all philosophies, persuasions and wings of the party — delivered that message in town halls, interviews, op-eds and on social media.

From Salon ● Nov. 11, 2025

But one day when he was pouring out petitions, persuasions, promises, she hesitated.

From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton

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Related Words

• belief
• creed
• denomination

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