What does entertained mean?
Entertained is the past tense and past participle of the verb entertain, carrying three main senses: providing amusement or pleasure to someone, receiving and looking after guests, and mentally considering an idea or feeling. A host might have entertained friends at dinner, a performer may have entertained thousands, and a sceptical manager might have entertained doubts about a plan. The word carries warm, positive connotations in its social senses — suggesting generosity, charm, and good company — while its mental sense has a more neutral, contemplative tone. It derives from French entretenir, from Latin inter ('between') and tenere ('to hold'), so at root it means to keep someone or something 'held up' — whether their spirits, their comfort, or a passing thought. Its derivatives include entertainment, entertaining, and entertainer.
Provided amusement, enjoyment, or hospitality to someone.
"They entertained us all evening with music and laughter."
Used with auxiliary verbs or passively: having been amused, hosted, or kept in mind.
"The guests were entertained royally throughout their stay."
Also used adjectivally in phrases like 'a well-entertained audience', though this remains rare compared with the simple verb use.
When you entertain an idea, you're literally 'holding it between' yourself and it — the word traces back to Latin inter (between) and tenere (to hold).
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of entertained
Entertained comes from the verb entertain, which entered English from Old French entretenir, itself from Latin roots inter ('between' or 'among') and tenere ('to hold'). Originally it meant to maintain, sustain, or keep up — which survives in the sense of harbouring an idea. By the sixteenth century it had developed its familiar meanings of amusing others and showing hospitality to guests, and those remain dominant today.
Related word forms
How entertained is actually used
Mostly used in narrative, journalistic, and formal contexts as the past form of 'entertain'. The sense of harbouring an idea or suspicion ('he entertained doubts') is slightly formal but common in writing. In British English, hosting people at home is often phrased simply as 'they entertained' without an object.
Easily confused with entertained
'Entrained' means carried away or drawn along (as by a fluid or a rhythm), while 'entertained' means amused or hosted.