mesmerist

IPA/ˈmez.mər.ɪst/
IPA/ˈmez.mər.ɪst/

mesmerist — noun

  • mesmeristsingular
  • mesmeristsplural

1. someone who uses special techniques to make people enter a sleep-like trance, of

1.nounC2
Definition

someone who uses special techniques to make people enter a sleep-like trance, often as a stage performer or to entertain an audience

Example

The street performer worked as a mesmerist, making volunteers from the crowd cluck like chickens.

countable noun: a mesmerist

Nora booked a mesmerist for her birthday party, and the guests laughed for hours.

collocation: book a mesmerist

Common collocations
  • famous mesmerist
  • stage mesmerist
  • book a mesmerist
  • watch a mesmerist
  • work as a mesmerist
Synonyms
  • hypnotist

    the standard modern term; 'hypnotist' is far more common in everyday English

  • mesmerizer

    much rarer; sometimes used to describe someone who fascinates or captivates, not necessarily a performer

Grammar Patterns

a + mesmerist

work as a mesmerist

Usage Note

Slightly old-fashioned; the modern equivalent is usually 'hypnotist'. 'Mesmerist' is still used for stage performers who present their act using older, theatrical methods.

Common Mistakes

The mesmerist hypnotized me through his special power.
The mesmerist placed me in a trance through suggestion and focused attention.
Mesmerism relies on suggestion, not supernatural power.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Both 'mesmerist' and 'hypnotist' describe a person who puts others into a trance-like state, but the two words carry different historical and stylistic weights. 'Hypnotist' is the standard modern term — it names a practitioner of hypnosis, which is widely studied and used in therapy and entertainment. 'Mesmerist' is older and refers specifically to the techniques of Franz Mesmer (animal magnetism); today it is mostly used for stage performers who add a theatrical, old-fashioned flavour to their act. 'Mesmerizer' is even rarer and can simply mean someone who fascinates others, without any trance involved. For example: a clinical hypnotist might help a patient quit smoking, while a mesmerist at the county fair makes volunteers forget their own names for a laugh.

mesmerist ↗hypnotist ↗mesmerizer

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • work as a mesmerist
  • book a mesmerist
  • watch a mesmerist

Etymology

GermanFrenchEnglish

The word comes from the name of Franz Anton Mesmer (1734–1815), a German doctor who claimed he could heal people by channelling a force he called 'animal magnetism' through his body. His method of putting patients into a trance became known as 'mesmerism', and a person who practised it was called a 'mesmerist'. The word entered English in the early 19th century.