transfixing

verb

present participle of transfix
as in piercing
to penetrate or hold (something) with a pointed object transfixed the inanimate butterfly specimens to the collection board

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 transfixing His eight-song set, which I was blessed to experience firsthand, was sparsely arranged—the accompaniment amounted to a set of brass bells, a bass guitar, and Cox’s trusty SP-404—yet transfixing all the same. — Walden Green, Pitchfork, 30 Oct. 2026 What makes Sam McConnell’s film transfixing, however, is the very personal nature of the drama, written by star Brock Yurich and clearly inspired by his own story. — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 16 June 2026 Brazen, physical, able to do more with one (yes) intense gesture than with reams of dialogue, his Bullseye is transfixing. — Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 30 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for transfixing
  1. piercing
  2. stabbing
  3. puncturing
  4. jabbing
  5. picking
  6. sticking
Verb
  • And over there—the six sky-piercing minarets of the 400-year-old Blue Mosque.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 6 Nov. 2026
  • When Rafael Rodríguez Rapún (Miguel Bernardeau), a Republican freedom fighter with piercing eyes and a lower abdominal wound, is wheeled into the infirmary, Sebastián is assigned to watch over him and extract information.
    — Justin Chang, New Yorker, 3 Nov. 2026
Definition of piercing
Verb
  • The Baltimore Police Department says Abubakarr Barrie, 23, is accused of stabbing a 15-year-old girl inside a home.
    — Kelsie Cairns, FOXNews.com, 3 Nov. 2026
  • Hank Sanders/Daily Southtown Paula Larson speaks to media May 6, 2024, about charges brought in the 1966 stabbing death of her mother, Karen Snider.
    — Evy Lewis, Chicago Tribune, 3 Nov. 2026
Definition of stabbing
Verb
  • In fact, Fielder says, Blaine was literally stabbing his hand, puncturing his own flesh to create the illusion of an illusion.
    — Naomi Fry, New Yorker, 17 Oct. 2026
  • Executioners spent more than two hours trying to find a vein, possibly puncturing his bladder before giving up.
    — Keri Blakinger, ProPublica, 6 Oct. 2026
Definition of puncturing
Verb
  • Then, inside the death house, executioners struggled to find a vein, jabbing Pike with at least seven needles, according to her lawyers, one of whom watched in dismay.
    — Keri Blakinger, ProPublica, 6 Oct. 2026
  • When handcuffed by investigators, Thakor denied jabbing his wife with a knife.
    — Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of jabbing
Verb
  • To be fair to the Falcons, picking Georgia Tech to cover the spread at Pittsburgh was almost as dumb.
    — Michael Cunningham, AJC.com, 5 Nov. 2026
  • In one scenario cited by Visa, a customer asks the AI for help in picking a new television.
    — Roy Stephen Canivel, Footwear News, 5 Nov. 2026
Definition of picking
Verb
  • Along with being a calf-sticking impostor, Conrad, according to Hemingway, was a malicious defamer.
    — Stephen Bates, New Yorker, 22 Oct. 2026
  • The Turkish and Yemeni traditions that incorporate cloves give the current trend a cultural anchor that pure wellness fads typically lack, which may be part of why this one is sticking.
    — Hanna Wickes, Miami Herald, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of sticking

Browse Nearby Words

transfixes
transfixing
transform
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Transfixing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/transfixing. Accessed 7 Nov. 2026.

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