mesmerize means to exercise mesmerism on; to affect another person, such as to heal or soothe, through the use of animal magnetism. Lexicurio rates it Rare gem — a strength score of 79 out of 100.
mesmerize is pronounced /ˈmɛzməɹaɪz/.
Why “mesmerize” is a great word
MESMERIZE — [Verb] To hold the complete attention of someone, as if by a hypnotic power; to enthrall. The word is a back-formation from *mesmerism*, from the name of Franz Anton Mesmer, an 18th-century Austrian physician who developed the theory of animal magnetism; first attested in 1829. Unlike "fascinate," which suggests a strong, positive intellectual attraction, or "hypnotize," which specifically induces a clinical trance, to mesmerize is to captivate with a potent, almost involuntary force. It is the coiling dance of a cobra before its prey, the palpable stillness of an audience as a dancer holds a perfect balance, or the slow, unblinking gyre of a pocket watch catching the light—a quiet acknowledgment that one has given away the keys to one's own perception.
verb
- To exercise mesmerism on; to affect another person, such as to heal or soothe, through the use of animal magnetism.“Mesmer had about a hundred people whom he had instructed as magnetisers, some of whom belonged to the nobility, who also "mesmerised" people by making passes over the affected parts of the body.”
- To spellbind; to enthrall.“She mesmerized the audience with her tricks”