transfix

[ trans-fiks ]
See synonyms for transfix on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object),trans·fixed or trans·fixt, trans·fix·ing.
  1. to make or hold motionless with amazement, awe, terror, etc.

  2. to pierce through with or as if with a pointed weapon; impale.

  1. to hold or fasten with or on something that pierces.

Origin of transfix

1
1580–90; <Latin trānsfīxus (past participle of trānsfīgere to pierce through), equivalent to trāns-trans- + fīg(ere) to pierce + -sus, variant of -tus past participle suffix

Other words for transfix

Other words from transfix

  • trans·fix·ion [trans-fik-shuhn], /trænsˈfɪk ʃən/, noun
  • un·trans·fixed, adjective

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

British Dictionary definitions for transfix

transfix

/ (trænsˈfɪks) /


verb-fixes, -fixing, -fixed or -fixt (tr)
  1. to render motionless, esp with horror or shock

  2. to impale or fix with a sharp weapon or other device

  1. med to cut through (a limb or other organ), as in amputation

Origin of transfix

1
C16: from Latin transfīgere to pierce through, from trans- + fīgere to thrust in

Derived forms of transfix

  • transfixion (trænsˈfɪkʃən), 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