English Meaning & Definitions
Holding complete attention as if by magic; intensely captivating, enchanting, or mesmerizing.
- “The soloist delivered a spellbinding performance that left the audience in breathless silence.”
- “Her spellbinding novel kept readers engrossed until the early hours of the morning.”
English Synonyms & Near Equivalents
English Antonyms & Opposites
Comprehensive Thesaurus Breakdown
Compare formal, informal, literary synonyms and register nuances for “spellbinding”.
A compound formed in late 19th-century American English, combining 'spell' (a magical charm or incantation, from Old English 'spell' meaning story or discourse) and 'binding' (from Old English 'bindan', meaning to tie or fasten). It originally described eloquent politicians and orators who held their audiences completely enthralled, as if physically bound by magic.
Think of a magic SPELL that BINDS your attention so tightly you cannot look away.
Frequently Asked Questions About “spellbinding”
1. What is the meaning of “spellbinding” in English?
In English, spellbinding (adjective) is defined as: “Holding complete attention as if by magic; intensely captivating, enchanting, or mesmerizing.”.
2. How do you use “spellbinding” in a sentence?
“The soloist delivered a spellbinding performance that left the audience in breathless silence.”
3. What are English synonyms of “spellbinding”?
4. What is the etymology and word origin of “spellbinding”?
A compound formed in late 19th-century American English, combining 'spell' (a magical charm or incantation, from Old English 'spell' meaning story or discourse) and 'binding' (from Old English 'bindan', meaning to tie or fasten). It originally described eloquent politicians and orators who held their audiences completely enthralled, as if physically bound by magic.
🇬🇧More English Words to English
View all English words →The base unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), equal to the duration of 9,192,631,770 periods of the radiation corresponding to the transition between the two hyperfine levels of the ground state of the caesium-133 atom.
A specific duration of time equal to one hour and forty-six minutes and twelve seconds.
The cardinal number equal to one thousand million (1,000,000,000), expressed in scientific notation as 10^9.
A specific duration of time equivalent to one hour and forty-six minutes.