mesmerise
To hold someone's attention so completely they cannot look away.
mesmerise in a sentence
- The magician's swinging watch mesmerised the audience until every eye followed it.
- Lava lamps mesmerise my little brother, who can watch the floating blobs for hours.
Try an 11+ style question
Verbal reasoning papers often ask about a word like this.
Which word is most nearly opposite in meaning to mesmerise?
- Abore
- Bhypnotise
- Ccaptivate
Show the answer
A: bore. The other three mean nearly the same as mesmerise.
Words that mean something similar
hypnotise, captivate
Words that mean the opposite
bore
More words about thinking & learning
- muddle: To mix things up so they become confusing.
- mystify: To confuse someone completely.
- mythical: Existing only in stories and legends, not in real life.
- notion: An idea or a thought about something.
- novel: New, different and unlike anything seen before.
- novice: Someone who is new to an activity and still learning it.
- oblivious: Not noticing what is happening around you.
- obscure: Not well known, or hard to see or understand.
More words to explore
Sitting the 11+ in Kent, Medway or Buckinghamshire?
Plain-English guides to each test, from the councils’ own pages: Kent Test · Medway Test · Bucks Secondary Transfer Test