Meaning & use
captivating
Last updated
Meaning
adjectivecomparable
So charming or interesting that it holds your whole attention.
Grammar: Can be graded: a more captivating story, the most captivating singer.
Patterns
- captivating to someone
- a captivating performance
The storyteller gave a captivating account of her voyage.
Her smile was captivating, and the room fell quiet.
The documentary offers a captivating look at deep-sea life.
Word forms
| comparative | more captivating |
|---|---|
| superlative | most captivating |
Common combinations
- captivating story
- The book tells a captivating story of friendship.
- captivating performance
- The young pianist gave a captivating performance.
- captivating voice
- He has a captivating voice that draws the audience in.
- utterly captivating
- The view from the cliff was utterly captivating.
- captivating audiences
- The show has been captivating audiences for years.
Synonyms and how they differ
- enchanting
- Enchanting suggests a magical, delightful charm, while captivating stresses the hold on attention.
- fascinating
- Fascinating focuses on mental interest, whereas captivating also includes charm or attraction.
- gripping
- Gripping is used for tense, suspenseful material, which is narrower than captivating.
Opposites
Word family
- captivate verb
- to attract and hold the attention of
- captivation noun
- the state of being fascinated
- captivated adjective
- completely fascinated
- captivatingly adverb
- in a way that holds attention
Commonly confused: captivating or captive?
captivating vs captive
A captive is someone held prisoner; captivating is about charm, though both come from the same root.
Practice
The speaker was so ___ that nobody checked their phones for an hour.
Choose one answer.
Captivating describes something that holds attention. Captive and captured relate to being held physically, and capable means able.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “captivating”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.