magnetize

[ mag-ni-tahyz ]
See synonyms for magnetize on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object),mag·net·ized, mag·net·iz·ing.
  1. to make a magnet of or impart the properties of a magnet to.

  2. to exert an attracting or compelling influence upon: The evangelist's oratory magnetized his listeners.

  1. Archaic. to mesmerize.

Origin of magnetize

1
First recorded in 1775–85; magnet + -ize
  • Also especially British, mag·ne·tise .

Other words from magnetize

  • mag·net·iz·er, noun
  • non·mag·net·ized, adjective
  • re·mag·net·ize, verb (used with object), re·mag·net·ized, re·mag·net·iz·ing.
  • un·mag·net·ized, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use magnetize in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for magnetize

magnetize

magnetise

/ (ˈmæɡnɪˌtaɪz) /


verb(tr)
  1. to make (a substance or object) magnetic

  2. to attract strongly

  1. an obsolete word for mesmerize

Derived forms of magnetize

  • magnetizable or magnetisable, adjective
  • magnetization or magnetisation, noun
  • magnetizer or magnetiser, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for magnetize

magnetize

[ măgnĭ-tīz′ ]


  1. To cause an object to become temporarily or permanently magnetic. For example, an unmagnetized object made of ferromagnetic material consists of molecules that are magnetic but randomly aligned, producing no net magnetic field; exposure to a magnetic field causes the molecules to align themselves with the field, producing their own net field, so that the object as a whole becomes magnetized.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.