hypnotic

C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities

US /hɪpˈnɑtɪk/ UK /hɪpˈnɒtɪk/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

adj
inducing sleep or a trance-like state; mesmerizing

The dancer's hypnotic movements held the audience spellbound.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · inducing sleep or a... mesmerizingsoporificspellbindingtrancelikesedative entrancing

Opposites

stimulatinginvigoratingrousing

Word family

Derived forms hypnotically

Related forms hypnosishypnotism hypnotize

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

hypnotic trance
a trance brought about through hypnosis

Adjective + noun

Simplified etymology

Hypnotic goes back to Greek hupnōtikos, “narcotic” or “causing sleep,” from hupnoun, “to put to sleep.” It entered English in the early 17th century.

Etymology

From French hypnotique, from Late Latin hypnoticus, from Ancient Greek hypnotikos ('inclined to sleep'), from hypnos ('sleep'), from Proto-Indo-European *swep- ('to sleep').

hypnotikos Ancient Greek hypnos Ancient Greek *swep- Proto-Indo-European

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# hypnotic

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** adj
**IPA (US):** /hɪpˈnɑtɪk/
**IPA (UK):** /hɪpˈnɒtɪk/

## Meanings
1. inducing sleep or a trance-like state; mesmerizing

## Examples
- The dancer's hypnotic movements held the audience spellbound.

## Synonyms
- mesmerizing
- soporific
- spellbinding
- trancelike
- sedative
- entrancing

## Antonyms
- stimulating
- invigorating
- rousing

## Derived Forms
- hypnotically

## Related Forms
- hypnosis
- hypnotism
- hypnotize

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: hypnotikos
- Root: hypnos
- Root: *swep-

## Etymology
From French hypnotique, from Late Latin hypnoticus, from Ancient Greek hypnotikos ('inclined to sleep'), from hypnos ('sleep'), from Proto-Indo-European *swep- ('to sleep').

## AI Etymology
hypnotic comes from French hypnotique, from Late Latin hypnoticus, from Ancient Greek hypnotikos ('inclined to sleep'), from hypnos ('sleep'), from Proto-Indo-European *swep- ('to sleep'). The path is chiefly one of transmission: the word passes through the named languages and forms, with each stage preserving part of the modern shape. In present English, the adjective sense is "inducing sleep or a trance-like state; mesmerizing", so the historical development ends in a clearly identifiable modern dictionary use. The same base also appears in related forms such as hypnosis, hypnotism, and hypnotize, and in derivatives such as hypnotically. Its semantic neighborhood includes mesmerizing, soporific, spellbinding, and trancelike, which helps locate the modern sense without adding a separate etymological claim. The named historical forms include Ancient Greek hypnotikos, Ancient Greek hypnos, and Proto-Indo-European *swep-.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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