spellbound

[spel-bound]

See more synonyms for spellbound on Thesaurus.com

adjective

bound by or as if by a spell; enchanted, entranced, or fascinated: a spellbound audience.

Origin of spellbound

First recorded in 1790–1800; spell² + -bound¹

spellbind

[spel-bahynd]

verb (used with object), spell·bound, spell·bind·ing.

to hold or bind by or as if by a spell; enchant; entrance; fascinate.

Origin of spellbind

1800–10; spell² + bind, deduced from spellbound

Related formsspell·bind·ing·ly, adverb

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for spellbound

breathless, bemused, rapt, enthralled, amazed, charmed, bewildered, possessed, hooked, transported, held, bewitched, petrified, transfixed, mesmerized, gripped, agape, open-mouthed

Examples from the Web for spellbound

Contemporary Examples of spellbound

He came at David O. Selznick's urging, and together they made Rebecca, Spellbound, and The Paradine Case.
Alfred Hitchcock’s Fade to Black: The Great Director’s Final Days
David Freeman
December 13, 2014
Eleven years ago, New Yorkers were spellbound by the sight of the burning towers.
New York City’s Sandy Disaster: A Meteorological 9/11?
Michael Daly
October 30, 2012
At the Special Court for Sierra Leone, Justice Richard Lussick read the verdict to about 80 spellbound listeners.
War Criminal Charles Taylor’s Daughter Defends Her Dad
Robtel Neajai Pailey
April 27, 2012
The audience was spellbound to hear panelist Zin Mar Aung give her dramatic, firsthand account of life behind bars in Burma.
Burmese Spring or Phony Thaw?
Melinda Liu
March 10, 2012

Historical Examples of spellbound

And then her eyes were caught by something that held her spellbound with horror.
The Heart of Thunder Mountain
Edfrid A. Bingham
There was something in that sweet old face that kept them spellbound.
The Old Countess; or, The Two Proposals
Ann S. Stephens
The realization and quick understanding held him spellbound.
Astounding Stories of Super-Science, June, 1930
Various
Spellbound Jacques gazed upon the scene of awful destruction.
Fighting in France
Ross Kay
Our breath came back, and the spellbound silence was broken.
The Right Stuff
Ian Hay

British Dictionary definitions for spellbound

spellbound

adjective

having one's attention held as though one is bound by a spella spellbound audience

spellbind

verb -binds, -binding or -bound

(tr) to cause to be spellbound; entrance or enthral

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

Word Origin and History for spellbound

adj.

1799, from spell (n.) + bound (adj.1) "fastened," past participle of bind (v.).

spellbind

1808, from spell (n.) + bind. Related: Spellbinding.