Meaning & use

ravish

verb·Advanced

To fill someone with intense delight or admiration, overwhelming them emotionally.

See it in a sentence

The soprano's performance ravished the audience into complete silence.

Visitors are ravished by the view from the mountain's summit at sunrise.

A note on using this word

Ravish is mostly encountered today in its adjective form 'ravishing,' meaning stunningly beautiful; the verb has an older, harsher sense of seizing someone by force.

Words with a similar meaning

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Words with an opposite meaning

Another way to use it

2. verb

Archaic: to seize and carry someone off by force.

In the old tale, the princess is ravished from the tower by a rival kingdom's soldiers.

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