Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • intransitive verb To cause to draw near or adhere by physical force.
  • intransitive verb To arouse or compel the interest, admiration, or attention of.
  • intransitive verb To possess or use the power of attraction.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun Attraction; in plural, attractive qualities; charms.
  • To draw in, to, or toward by direct mechanical agency or action of any kind.
  • To draw to or toward (itself) by inherent physical force; cause to gravitate toward or cohere with.
  • To draw by other than physical influence; invite or allure; win: as, to attract attention; to attract admirers.
  • Synonyms To entice, fascinate, charm.
  • To possess or exert the power of attraction: as, it is a property of matter to attract.
  • Figuratively, to be attractive or winning: as, his manners are calculated to attract.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun obsolete Attraction.
  • transitive verb To draw to, or cause to tend to; esp. to cause to approach, adhere, or combine; or to cause to resist divulsion, separation, or decomposition.
  • transitive verb To draw by influence of a moral or emotional kind; to engage or fix, as the mind, attention, etc.; to invite or allure.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • verb To pull toward without touching
  • verb To arouse interest
  • verb To make someone feel sexually excited

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • verb direct toward itself or oneself by means of some psychological power or physical attributes
  • verb be attractive to
  • verb exert a force on (a body) causing it to approach or prevent it from moving away

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English attracten, from Latin attrahere, attract- : ad-, ad- + trahere, pull.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Latin attractus, past participle of attrahere ("to draw to, attract"), from ad ("to") + trahere ("to draw").

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Examples

  • Try to make your title attract a certain audience.

    News Tom's Hardware US 2009

  • By the way, how many Bostonians did Sarah Palin attract yesterday on the Boston Common?

    Former Wisconsin governor: I won't run for Senate 2010

  • The nature of the opposition they attract is itself proof that con-cons can make a real difference.

    J.H. Snider: A Historic Year for State Con-Cons J.H. Snider 2010

  • If there are multiple trailers for one movie out in theaters, attached to different movies, the possible audience it can attract is broadened as opposed to just in one trailer's case.

    34 High Resolution Photos from The Losers | /Film 2010

  • How communities are run and their priorities, how you live your life, what kinds of people you attract is the ultimate politics.

    Easter Lemming Liberal News 2008

  • Yet it must again attract it precisely as that of which it is conscious as itself, only in a different form [Gestalt].

    'The Abyss of the Past': Psychoanalysis in Schelling's Ages of the World (1815) 2008

  • Why plants would try to poison the honeybees they wish to attract is a scientific mystery.

    April 1st, 2007 2007

  • Diplomatically, the United States can use the combination of “hard” and “soft” assets that constitute its unique strength to show a face that will again attract the world.

    Declaring Victory 2006

  • Diplomatically, the United States can use the combination of “hard” and “soft” assets that constitute its unique strength to show a face that will again attract the world.

    slideshow-test 2006

  • Diplomatically, the United States can use the combination of “hard” and “soft” assets that constitute its unique strength to show a face that will again attract the world.

    Declaring Victory 2006

Comments

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  • Railroad telegraphers' shorthand for "Show every attention". --US Railway Association, Standard Cipher Code, 1906.

    January 20, 2013