Verb

To entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner; to stir with pleasing emotions.

I watch these movies because they amuse me.

It always amuses me to hear the funny stories why people haven't got a ticket, but I never let them get in without paying.

* Gilpin

A group of children amusing themselves with pushing stones from the top [of the cliff], and watching as they plunged into the lake.

To cause laughter, to be funny.

(archaic) To keep in expectation; to beguile; to delude.

* Johnson

He amused his followers with idle promises.

(archaic) To occupy or engage the attention of; to lose in deep thought; to absorb; also, to distract; to bewilder.

* Holland

Camillus set upon the Gauls when they were amused in receiving their gold.

* Fuller

Being amused with grief, fear, and fright, he could not find the house.

Verb

(en verb)

To divert the attention of.

* {{quote-news, year=2011, date=December 10, author=David Ornstein, work=BBC Sport

, title= Arsenal 1-0 Everton , passage=While Gunners boss Arsene Wenger had warned his players against letting the pre-match festivities distract them from the task at hand, they clearly struggled for fluency early on.}}

* {{quote-magazine, date=2013-06-29, volume=407, issue=8842, page=55, magazine=(The Economist)

, title= Travels and travails , passage=Even without hovering drones, a lurking assassin, a thumping score and a denouement, the real-life story of Edward Snowden, a rogue spy on the run, could be straight out of the cinema. But, as with Hollywood, the subplots and exotic locations may distract from the real message: America’s discomfort and its foes’ glee.}}

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