as in interesting
holding the attention or provoking interest
an engrossing lecture on Native American culture before the arrival of Europeans
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in intriguing
to hold the attention of
a mystery story that will engross readers all the way to the surprise ending
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of engrossing
Vulture Editors, Vulture, 1 Apr. 2025
When all is said and done, Chappie ends up being another Jupiter Ascending — a movie that's more engrossing to talk about than watch from beginning to end.
—Fran Ruiz, Space.com, 28 Mar. 2025
Simon Abrams, New York Times, 27 Dec. 2024
But the majority of the images are engrossing, sensitive, and often startling portraits of famous people, including Joan Didion, Brice Marden, Kara Walker, Salman Rushdie, Billie Eilish, and Cindy Sherman.
—The New Yorker, 13 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for engrossing
Adjective
The title novel, Stag Dance, is an engrossing historical tale about turn-of-the-century lumberjacks who hold an annual dance where some of the men choose to attend as women.
—Vulture Editors, Vulture, 1 Apr. 2025
When all is said and done, Chappie ends up being another Jupiter Ascending — a movie that's more engrossing to talk about than watch from beginning to end.
—Fran Ruiz, Space.com, 28 Mar. 2025
Verb
Dynamic action scenes also compliment Ji-an’s surprising discoveries throughout this pulpy and engrossing crime thriller.
—Simon Abrams, New York Times, 27 Dec. 2024
But the majority of the images are engrossing, sensitive, and often startling portraits of famous people, including Joan Didion, Brice Marden, Kara Walker, Salman Rushdie, Billie Eilish, and Cindy Sherman.
—The New Yorker, 13 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for engrossing
Recent Examples of Synonyms for engrossing
Adjective
-
The company just lost billions in China, and that might have been the least interesting thing about its quarter.—
Shannon Carroll,
Quartz,
29 May 2025
-
Maybe this shows that Meghan really isn’t interesting enough.—
Stephanie Nolasco , Ashley Papa,
FOXNews.com,
29 May 2025
Adjective
-
Clemens has already come through with three big homers in sparse playing time for the Twins, showing intriguing bat-speed improvement at age 29.—
Aaron Gleeman,
New York Times,
19 May 2025
-
In an intriguing revision, the Heartbeat team expanded the role of the Page, who is besotted with the Syrian captain Narraboth, who is in turn besotted with Salome.—
Alex Ross,
New Yorker,
19 May 2025
Adjective
-
In one example of brand testing, two key takeaways were that virtual try-on is very engaging, while AI chat interface was perceived negatively.—
Alexandra Pastore,
Footwear News,
20 May 2025
-
These findings suggest that keeping relationships exciting and engaging is just as important as managing conflicts.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes.com,
20 May 2025
Verb
-
In between exploring Galicia’s storied cities, visitors should be sure to spend some time immersing themselves in the wilderness, with vast swathes of verdant forest to explore.—
Jared Ranahan,
Forbes.com,
13 Apr. 2025
-
For example, the Kross Studio's Bat-Signal lamp illuminates, further immersing the collector into the universe of Gotham City and also conceals a dedicated space on his backside to safely store The Batman tourbillon or any other watch.—
Stéphane JG Girod,
Forbes.com,
9 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
There's a fascinating set of new patches Chinese officials released for a series of launches with top-secret satellites over the last two months, Ars reports.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
23 May 2025
-
Seeing it through someone else’s eyes must be fascinating.—
Lacey Rose,
HollywoodReporter,
22 May 2025
Adjective
-
Warm weather and long days stoke the desire to let time and obligations fall away, and to give yourself over to an absorbing novel, history, or memoir.—
The Atlantic,
The Atlantic,
15 May 2025
-
As if confirming this idea, the process of observation when the camera rolls proves so absorbing that most of the movie’s images are allowed to stay onscreen for engrossingly (not showily) long stretches.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
13 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Engrossing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/engrossing. Accessed 2 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share