ravish
Americanverb (used with object)
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ravishes,
present (3rd person singular)
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ravished,
past participle, past
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ravishing
present participle
verb
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(often passive) to give great delight to; enrapture
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to rape
-
archaic to carry off by force
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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ravishsimple
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ravishessimple
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have ravishedperfect
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has ravishedperfect
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am ravishingprogressive
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are ravishingprogressive
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is ravishingprogressive
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have been ravishingperfect progressive
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has been ravishingperfect progressive
Past
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ravishedsimple
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had ravishedperfect
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was ravishingprogressive
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were ravishingprogressive
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had been ravishingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of ravish
1250–1300; Middle English ravishen < Middle French raviss-, long stem of ravir to seize ≪ Latin rapere; see rape 1
Explanation
If you are ravished by a piece of music, you are overcome with intense feeling while listening to it. The older meaning of ravish is to overcome by physical assault (especially sexual assault) and is still sometimes used. Ravish is a verb of contrasts, having two meanings that, while both dealing with emotional issues, are polar opposites — the first being to fill with joy, the second being to assault and violate a woman against her will. The history of ravish began with the negative connotation — that of seizing by violence and carrying someone, usually a woman, away. It comes from the Latin rapere, although the meaning wasn't always sexual violation — the idea of rape didn't appear until the mid-15th century.
Vocabulary lists containing ravish
Much Ado About Nothing
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The Suffix -ish, Part 2
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Metamorphoses
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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:
And hey, did you know that the word “raptor”—which is often used to describe birds of prey—comes from the Latin verb rapio, which means to plunder, rob, ravish, or abduct?
From Slate ● Feb. 21, 2026
“It’s going to completely ravish natural stands,” said Jenny Kimball, a professor of agronomy and plant genetics at the University of Minnesota.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 20, 2022
The other half saw “Train,” in which the Hosts attempt to guide the Arrivals in the ways of the land, only to have that used against them as their captors propulsively ravish the Earth.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 30, 2020
Le Mans ’66 was never merely a matter of speed and pride; it was also, in retrospect, a contest to ravish the eye.
From The New Yorker ● Nov. 8, 2019
These days we’re more likely to use ravish in the emotional than in the violent sense.
From "Woe Is I" by Patricia T. O'Conner
The most glowing review - a five-star write-up in the Telegraph - said Holland "ravishes" and "mesmerises" as Romeo.
From BBC ● May 24, 2024
“Adriana” examines the way war ravishes love and the sacrifices required to maintain equanimity.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 16, 2023
Virgin Islands for years redirected money intended to help pay insurance claims after large disasters for other needs, raising the vulnerability of residents as Hurricane Irma ravishes the territory.
From Reuters ● Sep. 6, 2017
Countless have already raved about “Carol” as the latest installment of Todd Haynes’ sumptuous revisionist cinema, for good reason: The film flat-out ravishes with pathos—it is moving but not mopey, dreamy while never soporific.
From Salon ● Nov. 30, 2015
And the grace of Almighty God doth every thing suddenly and hastily, but depart from us, it enlightens us, warms us, heats us, ravishes us, at once.
From Letters to Severall Persons of Honour by John Donne
Using a 1939 newspaper account, Moses pictured an 1862 fire that ravished the city in upstate New York.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 11, 2026
"It has been a month now since I haven't eaten or slept properly. Look at me, I am young, only 32, why should I be so ravished and depressed?" she cried.
From BBC ● Feb. 11, 2026
Ecuador has been ravished by poverty, the COVID-19 pandemic, a weak law enforcement system and corruption, but it also has a big active, legitimate foreign trade.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 12, 2024
Or maybe she’s just ravished by the scenery.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 18, 2022
And Tessie was a cobra, mesmerized, tamed, ravished by the sound.
From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides
And then there is his voice — perhaps at its most ravishing on “Take Care of Yourself,” a ballad from his 2011 album “Bella” — at once fierce and tender, colored by longing and loss.
From Salon ● May 15, 2026
Our critic called it “instructive, ravishing and thorough.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 9, 2025
“Sèvres Extraordinaire!”—which also includes portrait busts, plaques, medallions, platters and breakfast, coffee and tea services—is instructive, ravishing and thorough.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2025
This summer he was a luminary of the prestigious Salzburg Festival and Saturday conducted the world premiere of his ravishing Horn Concerto at the Lucerne Festival that was broadcast on a Swiss radio station.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2025
But the real reason why Theodora, with its ravishing music and Handel’s name above the title, opened to a near empty theatre in March 1750 was altogether more unexpected.
From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall
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