enchanting means having the ability to enchant; charming, delightful. It carries an Arena rating of 1759, earned across 14 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, enchanting ranks #250 of 17,130 for Most Beautiful Words, #394 of 42,747 for Qualifying, #1,297 of 17,134 for Most Malleable Words, #3,381 of 17,127 for Words That Escaped Their Books.
enchanting is pronounced /ɪnˈt͡ʃæntɪŋ/.
Why “enchanting” is a great word
Having the quality of delighting or captivating, as if by magic. Its lineage traces to the verb enchant, from Old French enchanter and Latin incantare (“to cast a spell on, bewitch”), from in- (“upon”) and cantare (“to sing, chant”); the adjectival sense ‘having magical power’ is attested from the 1590s, while the sense ‘delightful to the mind or senses’ emerged by 1712. Unlike “engaging,” which holds attention through interest, or “bewitching,” which implies an overpowering, almost sinister allure, enchanting describes a more graceful captivation. It is the dappled light through a canopy of leaves, the unexpected scent of night-blooming jasmine on still air, or the half-remembered lullaby hummed just beyond hearing—a quiet, persuasive magic that convinces you, for a moment, the world is woven from spells.
adj
- Having the ability to enchant; charming, delightful.e.g.“Hearing voices calling, I look down and see a crowd
Drumming and they chanting in a different tongue
Music so enchanting I had to go down
Watching what they doing, trying to understand” — 2012, “Shango”, performed by Lord Nelson:
noun
- An act of enchantment.e.g.“[…] by which the truth of the matter may the better be known of all felonies, murders, poisonings, enchantings, sorceries, magical arts, transgressions, […]” — 1841, Alfred Beesley, The History of Banbury, page 256:
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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