Definify.com
Webster 1913 Edition
Captivate
Cap′ti-vate
,Verb.
T.
[
imp. & p. p.
Captivated
; p. pr. & vb. n.
Captivating
.] 1.
To take prisoner; to capture; to subdue.
[Obs.]
Their woes whom fortune
captivates
. Shakespeare
2.
To acquire ascendancy over by reason of some art or attraction; to fascinate; to charm;
as, Cleopatra
. captivated
Antony; the orator captivated
all hearts
Syn. – To enslave; subdue; overpower; charm; enchant; bewitch; facinate; capture; lead captive.
Cap′ti-vate
,p.
Adj.
[L.
captivatus
.] Taken prisoner; made captive; insnared; charmed.
Women have been
captivate
ere now. Shakespeare
Webster 1828 Edition
Captivate
CAPTIVATE
, v.t.1.
To take prisoner; to seize by force; as an enemy in war.2.
To subdue; to bring into bondage.3.
To overpower and gain with excellence or beauty; to charm; to engage the affections; to bind in love.4.
To enslave; with to; as, captivated to error.CAPTIVATE
,Adj.
Definition 2024
captivate
captivate
English
Verb
captivate (third-person singular simple present captivates, present participle captivating, simple past and past participle captivated)
- To attract and hold interest and attention of; charm.
- Washington Irving
- small landscapes of captivating loveliness
- 1918, W. B. Maxwell, chapter 3, in The Mirror and the Lamp:
- One saint's day in mid-term a certain newly appointed suffragan-bishop came to the school chapel, and there preached on “The Inner Life.” He at once secured attention by his informal method, and when presently the coughing of Jarvis […] interrupted the sermon, he altogether captivated his audience with a remark about cough lozenges being cheap and easily procurable.
- Washington Irving
- (obsolete) To take prisoner; to capture; to subdue.
- Shakespeare
- Their woes whom fortune captivates.
- Glanvill
- 'Tis a greater credit to know the ways of captivating Nature, and making her subserve our purposes, than to have learned all the intrigues of policy.
- Shakespeare
Translations
to attract and hold interest and attention of
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