What does hypnotism mean?
Hypnotism is the practice or process of inducing a trance-like state of heightened attention and suggestibility. It has appeared in therapeutic settings, spiritualist practices, stage demonstrations, and popular entertainment, although modern research into hypnosis has not supported older claims that it could reveal hidden truths or cure illness through the power of suggestion alone. The word also has a figurative use for a compelling or repetitive style of influence, as in descriptions of political hypnotism. Historically, hypnotism developed alongside mesmerism, a practice named after the eighteenth-century physician Franz Mesmer, before “hypnosis” became the preferred term in many professional contexts. “Hypnotism” remains especially familiar from stage performances and historical writing. In everyday use, it can suggest either the deliberate techniques used by a hypnotist or the unusually suggestible state attributed to a subject. The term should not be equated with ordinary sleep, despite its Greek root meaning “sleep.”
nounThe practice or process of inducing a trance-like state of heightened attention and suggestibility, especially for therapeutic or entertainment purposes; also the state or influence produced by such a process.
- The practice or act of inducing a trance-like state of heightened attention and suggestibility, or the state and influence associated with that process.
"The lecture explored the history of hypnotism and its role in popular entertainment."
"The lecture explained how hypnotism was used to focus attention."
"Nineteenth-century audiences were fascinated by stage hypnotism."
Rare and literary; hypnotism is usually treated as an uncountable practice or process.
"The article compares two famous hypnotisms: a stage show and a private consultation."
The prefix “hypno-” means sleep, but hypnotism is not simply sleep: it is the deliberate induction of attention and suggestibility.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does hypnotism come from?
The word was established in English during the nineteenth century, drawing on the French form hypnotisme. That French word in turn preserves Greek hypnos, meaning “sleep,” together with the Greek-derived suffix -ismos, seen in English as -ism. Terms such as hypnology and hypnagogic continue the same Greek root, although they refer respectively to the study of sleep and the transition into or out of sleep rather than to hypnotism itself.
Related word forms
How hypnotism is actually used
Usually treated as an uncountable noun. It is common in historical discussion, stage entertainment, and figurative descriptions of persuasive influence; in modern clinical contexts, “hypnosis” is generally more usual.
Easily confused with hypnotism
Hypnosis can name both the state of being hypnotized and the broader technique, whereas hypnotism more specifically emphasizes the practice or process of inducing that state.