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Attract vs Captivate - What's the difference?

attract | captivate |

As verbs the difference between attract and captivate

is that attract is to pull toward without touching while captivate is to attract and hold interest and attention of; charm.

attract

English

Verb

(en verb)
  • To pull toward without touching.
  • * Derham
  • All bodies and all parts of bodies mutually attract themselves and one another.
  • *{{quote-magazine, year=2013, month=July-August, author= Stephen P. Lownie], [http://www.americanscientist.org/authors/detail/david-m-pelz David M. Pelz
  • , magazine=(American Scientist), title= Stents to Prevent Stroke , passage=As we age, the major arteries of our bodies frequently become thickened with plaque, a fatty material with an oatmeal-like consistency that builds up along the inner lining of blood vessels. The reason plaque forms isn’t entirely known, but it seems to be related to high levels of cholesterol inducing an inflammatory response, which can also attract and trap more cellular debris over time.}}
  • To arouse interest.
  • To draw by moral, emotional or sexual influence; to engage or fix, as the mind, attention, etc.; to invite or allure.
  • * (John Milton)
  • Attracted by thy beauty still to gaze.

    Synonyms

    * allure

    Antonyms

    * repel

    captivate

    English

    Verb

    (captivat)
  • To attract and hold interest and attention of; charm.
  • * Washington Irving
  • small landscapes of captivating loveliness
  • *, chapter=3
  • , title= The Mirror and the Lamp , passage=One saint's day in mid-term a certain newly appointed suffragan-bishop came to the school chapel, and there preached on “The Inner Life.”  He at once secured attention by his informal method, and when presently the coughing of Jarvis […] interrupted the sermon, he altogether captivated his audience with a remark about cough lozenges being cheap and easily procurable.}}
  • (obsolete) To take prisoner; to capture; to subdue.
  • * Shakespeare
  • Their woes whom fortune captivates .
  • * Glanvill
  • 'Tis a greater credit to know the ways of captivating Nature, and making her subserve our purposes, than to have learned all the intrigues of policy.

    Anagrams

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