amuse

verb

ə-ˈmyüz 

amused; amusing

transitive verb

1

a

: to entertain or occupy in a light, playful, or pleasant manner

She tried to amuse the child with a story.

b

: to appeal to the sense of humor of

His jokes don't amuse me.

2

a

archaic : to divert the attention of so as to deceive

b

obsolete : to occupy the attention of : absorb

c

obsolete : distract, bewilder

intransitive verb

obsolete : muse

amuser noun

Synonyms of amuse

• entertain
• regale

Choose the Right Synonym for amuse

amuse, divert, entertain mean to pass or cause to pass the time pleasantly.

amuse suggests that one's attention is engaged lightly.

amuse yourselves while I make dinner

divert implies distracting attention from worry or routine occupation especially by something funny.

a light comedy to divert the tired businessman

entertain suggests supplying amusement by specially contrived methods.

a magician entertaining children at a party

Examples of amuse in a Sentence

It amuses me to think of how he looked when I last saw him.

a funny story that never fails to amuse

He amused himself with a game of solitaire.

Recent Examples on the Web

Voters, unlike some pundits, aren’t looking to be entertained or amused by the state’s next leader. —Los Angeles Times, 10 May 2026

Her grandmother though is amused and amusing, fierce and surprising, allowed to be acerbic and to talk to her granddaughter about (literally) life and death topics rather than just dolls and baking and memories. —Literary Hub, 7 May 2026

The mishaps and mini-crises bonded the staff together and sometimes amused the viewing audience as well. —Brian Stelter, CNN Money, 6 May 2026

Twain was by turns amused and appalled by the histrionics that taint our tellings of history, and by the yawning gaps between myth and reality. —Sebastian Smee, New Yorker, 4 May 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle French amuser, from Old French, from a- (from Latin ad-) + muser to muse

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2a

Phrases Containing amuse

• amuse-bouche

Rhymes for amuse

• accrues
• accuse
• aircrews
• bamboos
• breakthroughs
• canoes
• cashews
• chartreuse
• confuse
• construes
• defuse
• ensues

Kids Definition

amuse

verb

ə-ˈmyüz 

amused; amusing

1

: to occupy with something pleasant

amuse a child with a toy

2

: to please the sense of humor of

the story amused everyone

amusedly

-ˈmyü-zəd-lē 

adverb

amusingly

-ˈmyü-ziŋ-lē

adverb