fascination

noun

fas·​ci·​na·​tion ˌfa-sə-ˈnā-shən 

1

a

: the quality or power of fascinating

b

: something fascinating

2

: the state of being fascinated : the state of feeling an intense interest in something

Synonyms

• allure
• animal magnetism
• appeal
• attractiveness
• captivation
• charisma
• charm
• duende
• enchantment
• force field
• glamour
• glamor
• magic
• magnetism
• oomph
• pizzazz
• pizazz
• seductiveness
• witchery

Examples of fascination in a Sentence

the fascination that the subject of dinosaurs has for most children

Recent Examples on the Web

Murthy’s advisory is an extraordinary synopsis of the toll of America’s fascination with firearms and its failure to regulate gun ownership. —Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 27 June 2024

True-crime historian Kate Winkler Dawson then tells us how public interest in Leopold and Loeb’s fate helped solidify true crime as a durable subject of fascination. —Chris Klimek, Smithsonian Magazine, 27 June 2024

More than any particular narrative thread, power is the show’s true object of fascination. —Inkoo Kang, The New Yorker, 26 June 2024

But the year 2000 has been a point of fascination for a couple years now (which feels equal to a decade these days), finding a captive audience with Gen Zers in particular. —Alena Botros, Fortune, 26 June 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1605, in the meaning defined at sense 1a