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Definition of persuasion - 6 dictionary results

per⋅sua⋅sion

  [per-swey-zhuhn]
Use persuasion in a Sentence
–noun
1. the act of persuading or seeking to persuade.
2. the power of persuading; persuasive force.
3. the state or fact of being persuaded or convinced.
4. a deep conviction or belief.
5. a form or system of belief, esp. religious belief: the Quaker persuasion.
6. a sect, group, or faction holding or advocating a particular belief, idea, ideology, etc.: Several of the people present are of the socialist persuasion.
7. Facetious. kind or sort.
Origin:
1350–1400; late ME < L persuāsiōn- (s. of persuāsiō; see per-, suasion ); r. ME persuacioun < MF persuacion < L, as above

Synonyms:
1. See advice.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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per·sua·sion   (pər-swā'zhən)   
n.  
  1. The act of persuading or the state of being persuaded: "The persuasion of a democracy to big changes is at best a slow process" (Harold J. Laski).
  2. The ability or power to persuade: "Three foremost aids to persuasion which occur to me are humility, concentration, and gusto" (Marianne Moore).
  3. A strongly held opinion; a conviction. See Synonyms at opinion.
    1. A body of religious beliefs; a religion: worshipers of various persuasions.
    2. A party, faction, or group holding to a particular set of ideas or beliefs.
  5. Informal Kind; sort: "the place where ... rockers of any gender or persuasion can become megastars" (Christopher John Farley).

[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin persuāsiō, persuāsiōn-, from persuāsus, past participle of persuādēre, to persuade; see persuade.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Persuasion

Per*sua"sion\, n. [L. persuasio; Cf. F. persuasion.]

1. The act of persuading; the act of influencing the mind by arguments or reasons offered, or by anything that moves the mind or passions, or inclines the will to a determination.

For thou hast all the arts of fine persuasion. --Otway.

2. The state of being persuaded or convinced; settled opinion or conviction, which has been induced.

If the general persuasion of all men does so account it. --Hooker.

My firm persuasion is, at least sometimes, That Heaven will weigh man's virtues and his crimes With nice attention. --Cowper.

3. A creed or belief; a sect or party adhering to a certain creed or system of opinions; as, of the same persuasion; all persuasions are agreed.

Of whatever state or persuasion, religious or political. --Jefferson.

4. The power or quality of persuading; persuasiveness.

Is 't possible that my deserts to you Can lack persuasion? --Shak.

5. That which persuades; a persuasive. [R.]

Syn: See Conviction.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : persuasion
Spanish: persuasión,
German: die Überredung,
Japanese: 説得
More Translations »

persuasion 
1382, "action of inducing (someone) to believe (something)," from O.Fr. persuasion (14c.), from L. persuasionem (nom. persuasio) "a convincing, persuading," from persuadere "persuade," from per- "thoroughly, strongly" + suadere "to urge, persuade," from PIE *swad-. Meaning "religious belief, creed" is from 1623. The verb persuade is first recorded 1513.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Main Entry: per·sua·sion
Pronunciation: p&r-'swA-zh&n
Function: noun
: a method of treating neuroses consisting essentially in rationalconversation and reeducation
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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persuasion

the process by which a person's attitudes or behaviour are, without duress, influenced by communications from other people. One's attitudes and behaviour are also affected by other factors (for example, verbal threats, physical coercion, one's physiological states). Not all communication is intended to be persuasive; other purposes include informing or entertaining. Persuasion often involves manipulating people, and for this reason many find the exercise distasteful. Others might argue that, without some degree of social control and mutual accommodation such as that obtained through persuasion, the human community becomes disordered. In this way, persuasion gains moral acceptability when the alternatives are considered. To paraphrase Winston Churchill's evaluation of democracy as a form of government, persuasion is the worst method of social control-except for all the others

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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