Inthralls

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To captivate individuals so thoroughly that they feel a sense of enslavement To completely hold someone's attention, leaving them feeling powerless or subordinate To enchant or fascinate someone to the point of seeming subjugation
2. To hold someone’s interest so intensely that they appear bound To engage individuals in a manner that makes them feel as though they are under a spell or in confinement To thoroughly engross someone’s focus, resulting in a loss of autonomy
3. To grip someone's full attention so strongly that they feel compelled or dominated

Etymology: "Inthralls" is the third-person singular present form of "inthrall," so its history is the history of that verb. "Inthrall" is an older spelling of "enthrall," which came into English from the verb "thrall," meaning to enslave or hold in bondage. The "thrall" root itself traces back to the Old Norse "thrǫll," a word for a bondservant or slave, and it reached English through the Old English "þrǣl" in the Anglo-Saxon period. The en- prefix, meaning "into" or "in a state of," turned the idea of bondage into a figure of speech: to enthrall someone is to put them under a spell, so that they are captive to a sight, a voice, or a story. The meaning moved from physical servitude to a mental grip that holds attention completely, which is the sense in which this form is used today.

Synonyms: enthralls, captivates

Antonyms: repels, disenchants