Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

mesmerism

/ˈmɛz.mɚˌɪz.əm/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.85 in modern English

Syllables: mes-mer-ism
IPA: /ˈmɛz.mɚˌɪz.əm/

15

Scrabble Score

9

Letters

4

Syllables

5

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

The method or power of gaining control over someone's personality or actions.

Countable; Uncountable

noun

The method or power of gaining control over someone's personality or actions.

Countable; Uncountable

noun

The state induced by hypnotic methods (especially those of Mesmer himself).

Countable; Uncountable

Example Sentences

"Near-synonyms: hypnosis, hypnotism, power of suggestion"
"What is the secret mesmerism which friendship possesses, and under the operation of which a person ordinarily sluggish, or cold, or timid, becomes wise, active, and resolute, in another's behalf?"
"Near-synonyms: hypnosis, trance"
"...the fact stood proven that I had seen it in my vision. Lawks! ...When the magician's engagement closed there was but one person in the village who did not believe in mesmerism, and I was the one. All the others were converted, but I was to remain an implacable and unpersuadable disbeliever in mesmerism and hypnotism for close upon fifty years."

Etymology

From French mesmérisme, analysable as Mesmer + -ism; so called after Franz Anton Mesmer (1734–1815), a German physician who developed the animal magnetism theory.

Word Breakdown

Suffix: Mesmer

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˈmɛz.mɚˌɪz.əm/
British English: /ˈmɛz.məˌɹɪz.əm/

Usage

Inflected Forms

mesmerisms (plural)

Derived Forms

mesmeric phrenomesmerism mesmerist mesmerize mesmerized mesmerizing

Frequently Paired Words

hypnosis somnolism

Synonyms

hypnosis hypnotism power of suggestion trance suggestion

Questions

How do you pronounce mesmerism?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈmɛz.mɚˌɪz.əm/.
What does mesmerism mean?: The method or power of gaining control over someone's personality or actions.
Where does mesmerism come from?: From French mesmérisme, analysable as Mesmer + -ism; so called after Franz Anton Mesmer (1734–1815), a German physician who developed the animal magnetism theory.

How to pronounce mesmerism

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “mesmerism”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈmɛz.mɚˌɪz.əm/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “mesmerism”.
Repeat and practice — Say “mesmerism” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.