hypnotize

IPA/ˈhɪpnətaɪz/
KK[hˈɪpnətˌaɪz]IPA/ˈhɪpnətaɪz/

hypnotize — verb

  • hypnotizepresent simple I / you / we / they
  • hypnotizeshe / she / it
  • hypnotizedpast simple
  • hypnotizing-ing form

1. to guide someone into a relaxed, trance-like mental state in which they become u

1.verbtransitiveB2
Definition

to guide someone into a relaxed, trance-like mental state in which they become unusually open to suggestions or instructions from the person who guides them

Example

The therapist gently hypnotized Sofia to help her relax during the treatment.

hypnotize + person for a therapeutic purpose

Mizuki watched the performer hypnotize a volunteer from the audience on stage.

Common collocations
  • hypnotize a patient
  • hypnotize someone on stage
  • hypnotize a volunteer
  • try to hypnotize
Synonyms
Antonyms
  • wake

    bring someone out of the hypnotic state

  • rouse

    bring someone back to full alertness

Grammar Patterns

hypnotize + person

Usage Note

This is the clinical or performance sense. The person being hypnotized (the subject) must be willing and cooperative — hypnosis cannot be forced on an unwilling person.

Common Mistakes

The doctor hypnotized me and I fell asleep.
The doctor hypnotized me and I entered a focused, suggestible state.
Hypnosis is not sleep; a hypnotized person remains aware and responsive, not unconscious.

2. to attract and hold someone's complete attention with something so fascinating o

2.verbtransitiveB2
Definition

to attract and hold someone's complete attention with something so fascinating or impressive that they become unaware of what is around them

Example

The crowd stood silently, completely hypnotized by the dancer's graceful movements.

passive: be hypnotized by [visually captivating stimulus]

Ishaan felt hypnotized by the deep colours spreading across the evening sky.

Common collocations
  • completely hypnotized
  • absolutely hypnotized
  • hypnotized by the view
  • hypnotized by the music
Synonyms
Antonyms
  • bore

    fail to hold attention at all

  • repel

    actively drive attention away

Grammar Patterns

be hypnotized by + something

hypnotize + someone

Usage Note

Often used in the passive voice (be hypnotized by). The active form requires a subject that is aesthetically or dramatically captivating — a performance, a view, a person's movements. Not used for routine intellectual tasks.

Common Mistakes

I was hypnotized by the tax form instructions.
I was hypnotized by the dancer's elegant performance.
The figurative sense requires something visually or emotionally captivating, not merely detailed or complex.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/2

All four words describe holding someone's attention strongly, but they differ in intensity and tone. Hypnotize suggests the strongest pull — as if the person has lost control of their own focus. Mesmerize is very close in intensity but carries a slightly more theatrical or literary flavour. Captivate is the gentlest of the group; you can be captivated by a conversation or a book without feeling helplessly drawn in. Entrance adds a dreamlike, almost magical quality — someone entranced seems transported to another world. Spellbind is the most dramatic and literary; it is rarely used in everyday speech. For example: 'The audience was captivated by the speaker's story' (positive, engaged), but 'The audience was hypnotized by the dancer's movements' (intense, almost involuntary).

mesmerize ↗captivate ↗entrance ↗spellbind

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • be hypnotized by
  • try to hypnotize
  • allow oneself to be hypnotized

Prepositions

Etymology

GreekEnglishModern English

Derived from the Greek word 'hypnos' (sleep), combined with the verb suffix '-ize'. The term was coined in the 1840s by Scottish surgeon James Braid, who studied what was then called 'mesmerism' and renamed it 'hypnotism' to emphasize the sleep-like state he observed in his patients. The figurative meaning — to captivate or fascinate — developed in the late 19th century as the idea of being 'held spellbound' entered everyday language.