transfix
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
-
to render motionless, esp with horror or shock
-
to impale or fix with a sharp weapon or other device
-
med to cut through (a limb or other organ), as in amputation
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
transfixsimple
-
transfixessimple
-
have transfixedperfect
-
have transfixtperfect
-
has transfixedperfect
-
has transfixtperfect
-
am transfixingprogressive
-
are transfixingprogressive
-
is transfixingprogressive
-
have been transfixingperfect progressive
-
has been transfixingperfect progressive
Past
-
transfixedsimple
-
transfixtsimple
-
had transfixedperfect
-
had transfixtperfect
-
was transfixingprogressive
-
were transfixingprogressive
-
had been transfixingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of transfix
1580–90; < Latin trānsfīxus (past participle of trānsfīgere to pierce through), equivalent to trāns- trans- + fīg ( ere ) to pierce + -sus, variant of -tus past participle suffix
Explanation
Use the verb transfix when something makes you freeze in fascination or fear. Your belly dancing moves might transfix your dance recital audience. You might describe the way the last minutes of a scary movie transfix your whole family, leaving them on the edge of their seats, or how the photographs in a gallery transfix you with their beauty. The word comes from transfixus, "impaled" in Latin, which in turn is rooted in trans, "through or across," and figere, "to fasten."
Vocabulary lists containing transfix
Power Prefix: trans-
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Things Fall Apart
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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:
As the exhibit’s days count down, the inspired visions from Kahlo, Rivera and their contemporaries continue to transfix visitors.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026
Both pieces confirm the impression that Thorvaldsdottir is incapable of writing music that doesn’t immediately transfix an open-eared listener.
From New York Times ● Jun. 29, 2023
A sign of her charisma is that during the final tableau, as Aida and Radamès are expiring in the tomb, Amneris continues to transfix the attention: even when she isn’t singing, she dominates the stage.
From The New Yorker ● Oct. 4, 2018
The sequence of events that followed would reverberate around the world and, within days, devastate a family, upend a city’s politics and transfix two nations.
From The Guardian ● Jul. 28, 2017
The changing patterns of light transfix my sight.
From "Ophelia" by Lisa Klein
This Eden is enhanced by the birth of a son, Elio, whose beauty transfixes all who see him.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 26, 2026
Waterhouse transfixes with the garage-y “Big Love,” which was inspired by stories she heard from “Frozen Oranges” author Violet Paley about her manic episodes at a New York City bar.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 13, 2024
Instead, pieces like “Knee Play 1,” from the opera “Einstein on the Beach,” unfold like a mandala that transfixes the listener.
From New York Times ● May 26, 2020
While Alix transfixes an auditorium of her peers with her decision to nurse her baby onstage, Emira has to cope with a security guard who accuses her of kidnapping Briar.
From Washington Post ● Jan. 6, 2020
The flashing of white, pink, and green briefly transfixes me.
From "The Adoration of Jenna Fox" by Mary E. Pearson
The sight of USA fans in colourful jerseys is commonplace throughout the host cities, and just about every restaurant with a TV has patrons transfixed on the latest drama.
From BBC ● Jul. 6, 2026
Dozens of men and boys stood transfixed as they watched Belgium play Egypt -- a much-anticipated fixture for Palestinian football fans eager to witness the prowess of their idol, Egyptian striker Mohamed Salah.
From Barron's ● Jun. 18, 2026
The tool’s rollout comes after the threat of a chemical tank explosion in Orange County transfixed Southern California over Memorial Day weekend.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 6, 2026
The saga has transfixed Germans since it began, and has left islanders on Anholt bemused by the continued interest.
From BBC ● May 31, 2026
The gaze of her clear eyes held them transfixed.
From "Bless Me, Ultima" by Rudolfo Anaya
Therefore we'll parry with cloak what shafts thou shootest against us; And by our bolts transfixt, penalty due thou shalt pay.
From The Carmina of Caius Valerius Catullus by Burton, Richard Francis, Sir
From being transfixt by such a jibe Maupassant was preserved by Flaubert.
From Inquiries and Opinions by Matthews, Brander
Had I but once transfixt thy froward breast, How would’st thou then——I staid not for the rest; But thus half angry to the boy replide: How would’st thou then my soul of sense bereave!
From Democritus Platonissans by More, Henry
Our critic praised the acting, saying “A quietly transfixing performance from Ayo Edebiri provides reason enough to see the Broadway revival.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026
A quietly transfixing performance from Ayo Edebiri provides reason enough to see the Broadway revival of “Proof,” David Auburn’s Pulitzer Prize- and Tony-winning drama, first staged in 2000.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 17, 2026
Who impressed, and who has the most to do after a transfixing opening weekend of the Six Nations?
From BBC ● Feb. 9, 2026
“Macbeth” may be Shakespeare’s most transfixing tragedy, but its dark magic often fizzles in the theater.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 19, 2025
It's the sunbeam transfixing and vivifying the earth-surface.
From Sunshine Jane by Warner, Anne
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.
