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Amuser - 3 dictionary results

a⋅muse

   [uh-myooz]
–verb (used with object), a⋅mused, a⋅mus⋅ing.
1. to hold the attention of (someone) pleasantly; entertain or divert in an enjoyable or cheerful manner: She amused the guests with witty conversation.
2. to cause mirth, laughter, or the like, in: The comedian amused the audience with a steady stream of jokes.
3. to cause (time, leisure, etc.) to pass agreeably.
4. Archaic. to keep in expectation by flattery, pretenses, etc.
5. Obsolete.
a. to engross; absorb.
b. to puzzle; distract.
Origin:
1470–80; < MF amuser to divert, amuse; see a- 5 , muse
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
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Language Translation for : Amuser
Spanish: divertir, German: amüsieren, Japanese: 笑わせる
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a·muse     (ə-myōōz')  Pronunciation Key 
tr.v.   a·mused, a·mus·ing, a·mus·es
  1. To occupy in an agreeable, pleasing, or entertaining fashion.
  2. To cause to laugh or smile by giving pleasure: I was not amused by his jokes.
  3. Archaic To delude or deceive.


[Middle English, from Old French amuser, to stupefy : a-, to (from Latin ad-; see ad-) + muser, to stare stupidly; see muse.]

a·mus'a·ble adj., a·mus'er n.
Synonyms: These verbs refer to actions that provide pleasure, especially as a means of passing time. Amuse, the least specific, implies directing attention away from serious matters: I amused myself with a game of solitaire.
Entertain suggests acts undertaken to furnish amusement: "They [timetables and catalogs] are much more entertaining than half the novels that are written" (W. Somerset Maugham).
Divert implies distraction from worrisome thought or care: "I had neither Friends or Books to divert me" (Richard Steele).
To regale is to entertain with something enormously enjoyable: "He loved to regale his friends with tales about the many memorable characters he had known as a newspaperman" (David Rosenzweig).

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Amuser

A*mus"er\ (-[~e]r), n. One who amuses.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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