Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun The class of phenomena exhibited by a magnetic field.
- noun The study of magnets and their effects.
- noun The force exerted by a magnetic field.
- noun Unusual power to attract, fascinate, or influence.
- noun Animal magnetism.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun That peculiar property occasionally possessed by certain bodies (more especially by iron and steel) whereby, under certain circumstances, they naturally attract or repel one another according to determinate laws.
- noun That branch of science which treats of the properties of the magnet, and of magnetic phenomena in general.
- noun Attractive power; capacity for exciting sympathetic interest or attention: as, the magnetism of eloquence; personal magnetism.
- noun See
mesmerism and hypnotism.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun The property, quality, or state, of being magnetic; the manifestation of the force in nature which is seen in a magnet. At one time it was believed to be separate from the electrical force, but it is now known to be intimately associated with electricity, as part of the phenomenon of
electromagnetism . - noun The science which treats of magnetic phenomena.
- noun Power of attraction; power to excite the feelings and to gain the affections.
- noun Same as
hypnotism , at one time believe to be due to a force more or less analogous to magnetism, which, it was alleged, is produced in animal tissues, and passes from one body to another with or without actual contact. The existence of such a force, and its potentiality for the cure of disease, were asserted by Mesmer in 1775. His theories and methods were afterwards calledmesmerism , a name which has been popularly applied to theories and claims not put forward by Mesmer himself. SeeMesmerism ,Biology ,Od ,Hypnotism . - noun the magnetic force exerted by the earth, and recognized by its effect upon magnetized needles and bars.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun The
property of beingmagnetic - noun The
science which treats of magneticphenomena . - noun Power of
attraction ; power toexcite thefeelings and to gain theaffections .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun attraction for iron; associated with electric currents as well as magnets; characterized by fields of force
- noun the branch of science that studies magnetism
Etymologies
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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Had he been a lexicographer he would have found the term magnetism far more inclusive.
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That is but _one_ phenomenon of magnetism, to which we have appropriated and confined the term magnetism; because of all the natural bodies at present known, iron, and one or two of its nearest relatives in the family of hard yet coherent metals, are the only ones, in which all the conditions are collected, under which alone the magnetic agency can appear in and during the act itself.
Hints towards the formation of a more comprehensive theory of life. Samuel Taylor Coleridge 1803
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No man of his time could hold a candle to Mr. Blaine in what we call magnetism - that is, in manly charm, supported by facility and brain power.
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Mrs. Carew has what you call magnetism -- a personality which I should imagine would be very appealing to a child.
The Millionaire Baby Anna Katharine Green 1890
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No man of his time could hold a candle to Mr. Blaine in what we call magnetism -- that is, in manly charm, supported by facility and brain power.
Marse Henry, Complete An Autobiography Henry Watterson 1880
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No man of his time could hold a candle to Mr. Blaine in what we call magnetism -- that is, in manly charm, supported by facility and brain power.
Marse Henry (Volume 2) An Autobiography Henry Watterson 1880
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Thus electrons should no longer be thought of as nebulous clouds and magnetism is no longer a mysterious invisible force.
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Schelling's interest in magnetism and somnambulism, which are often seen as part of the prehistory of psychoanalysis, [17] marks an early concern on his part with unconscious phenomena that goes beyond the mere use of the word unconscious (bewusstlos) in The System
'The Abyss of the Past': Psychoanalysis in Schelling's Ages of the World (1815) 2008
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The best definition I've heard for the word magnetism is this: the power to affect others with the delight someone takes in himself.
Jon Kerr: Santo's Humility: The Secret to His Success Jon Kerr 2010
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The best definition I've heard for the word magnetism is this: the power to affect others with the delight someone takes in himself.
Jon Kerr: Santo's Humility: The Secret to His Success Jon Kerr 2010
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