as in focused
to fix (as one's attention) steadily toward a central objective
everyone riveted their eyes on the trick that the magician was performing on stage
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of riveted
She is riveted as the actor playing Prince Hamlet (Noah Jupe) is onstage with her husband, Will, playing the ghost of his father, King Hamlet.
—
Anne Thompson, IndieWire, 5 Jan. 2026
Even with my winter boots and sturdy soles, caution dictates a short stride, a shuffling gait end eyes riveted to the slippery ground.
—Thomas Cangelosi, Hartford Courant, 4 Jan. 2026
But the game against Arkansas State riveted the Natural State’s two largest fan bases.
—Erick Taylor, Arkansas Online, 31 Dec. 2025
The jury was riveted to Jordan, arguably the best basketball player ever and certainly one of the most successful sportsmen-turned-businessmen.
—Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 6 Dec. 2025
The disappearance riveted the city and the nation.
—Ray Sanchez, CNN Money, 29 Nov. 2025
The first Levi’s riveted pants/overalls and the ones Davis made in his Nevada tailoring store had unbranded copper rivets.
—Mohsin Sajid, Sourcing Journal, 18 Nov. 2025
While millions are riveted by Sunday’s seven-minute jewelry heist of Napoleonic jewels at the Louvre, another major sizable snatching, the 1990 break-in at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston, resurfaced in the news in a different way.
—Rosemary Feitelberg, Footwear News, 20 Oct. 2025
The Adelsons’ involvement in the murder case’s tangled web has riveted those in the state capital — and thousands of internet true crime sleuths — for nearly a decade.
—Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 15 Oct. 2025
Anne Thompson, IndieWire, 5 Jan. 2026
Even with my winter boots and sturdy soles, caution dictates a short stride, a shuffling gait end eyes riveted to the slippery ground.
—Thomas Cangelosi, Hartford Courant, 4 Jan. 2026
But the game against Arkansas State riveted the Natural State’s two largest fan bases.
—Erick Taylor, Arkansas Online, 31 Dec. 2025
The jury was riveted to Jordan, arguably the best basketball player ever and certainly one of the most successful sportsmen-turned-businessmen.
—Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 6 Dec. 2025
The disappearance riveted the city and the nation.
—Ray Sanchez, CNN Money, 29 Nov. 2025
The first Levi’s riveted pants/overalls and the ones Davis made in his Nevada tailoring store had unbranded copper rivets.
—Mohsin Sajid, Sourcing Journal, 18 Nov. 2025
While millions are riveted by Sunday’s seven-minute jewelry heist of Napoleonic jewels at the Louvre, another major sizable snatching, the 1990 break-in at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston, resurfaced in the news in a different way.
—Rosemary Feitelberg, Footwear News, 20 Oct. 2025
The Adelsons’ involvement in the murder case’s tangled web has riveted those in the state capital — and thousands of internet true crime sleuths — for nearly a decade.
—Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 15 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for riveted
Verb
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While our immigration enforcement should be focused on apprehending and prosecuting violent criminals to make our communities safer, these ICE actions are doing the opposite and making our state less safe.—
WCCO Staff,
CBS News,
9 Jan. 2026
-
The museum, focused on the arts, history and technology, will draw tourists and scholars from around the world.—
Dorothy Jenkins Fields,
Miami Herald,
9 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Over the past few decades, wealth and political power have concentrated sharply at the top, with the political giving of the 100 richest Americans surging more than 100-fold since 2000 and far outpacing the rising cost of campaigns.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
15 Jan. 2026
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Mining sites face a similar issue, with arsenic concentrated in tailings near extraction areas.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
15 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Riveted.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/riveted. Accessed 20 Jan. 2026.
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