Meanings
present singular third person amuses · participle present amusing · participle past amused · past amused
- transitiveTo entertain or occupy (someone or something) in a pleasant manner; to stir (someone) with pleasing emotions.
I watch these movies because they amuse me.
2 more examples
It always amuses me to hear the funny stories why people haven't got a ticket, but I never let them get in without paying.
A group of children amusing themselves with pushing stones from the top [of the cliff], and watching as they plunged into the lake.
1786, William Gilpin, Observations, relative chiefly to picturesque beauty, made in the year 1772, on several parts of England; particularly the mountains, and lakes of Cumberland, and Westmoreland - archaictransitiveTo keep in expectation; to beguile; to delude.
- archaictransitiveTo occupy or engage the attention of; to lose in deep thought; to absorb; also, to distract; to bewilder.
the enemies were amused on the fires that our men made
1659, T[itus] Livius [i.e., Livy], “(please specify the book number)”, in Philemon Holland, transl., The Romane Historie […], London: […] W. Hunt, for George Sawbridge, […], →OCLC2 more examples
Being amused with grief, fear, and fright, he could not find the house.
1655, Thomas Fuller, The Church-history of Britain; […], London: […] Iohn Williams […], →OCLC, (please specify |book=I to XI)Hairs which have most amused me have not been in the Face or Head, but on the Back, and not in Men but Children, as I long ago observed in that Endemial Distemper of little Children in Languedock, called the Morgellons, […]
1690, Thomas Browne, A Letter to a Friend
Synonyms & antonyms
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Proto-Indo-European*h₂éd
- Proto-Italic*ad
- Proto-Italic*ad-
- Latinad-
- Old Frencha-
- Medieval Latinmusumder.?
- Old Frenchmuser
- Old Frenchamuser
- Middle English*amusen
- Englishamuse
From Late Middle English *amusen (“to mutter, be astonished, gaze meditatively on”), from Old French amuser (“to stupefy, waste time, be lost in thought”), from a- + muser (“to stare stupidly at, gape, wander, waste time, loiter, think carefully about, attend to”), of uncertain and obscure origin. Cognate with Occitan musa (“idle waiting”), Italian musare (“to gape idly about”). Possibly from Old French *mus (“snout”) from Vulgar Latin *mūsa (“snout”) — compare Medieval Latin mūsum (“muzzle, snout”) –, from Proto-Germanic *mū- (“muzzle, snout”), from Proto-Indo-European *mū- (“lips, muzzle”). Compare North Frisian müs, mös (“mouth”), German Maul (“muzzle, snout”). Alternative etymology connects muser and musa with Frankish *muoza (“careful attention, leisure, idleness”), from Proto-Germanic *mōtǭ (“leave, permission”), from Proto-Indo-European *med- (“to acquire, possess, control”). This would make it a cognate of Dutch musen (“to leisure”), Old High German *muoza (“careful attention, leisure, idleness”) and muozōn (“to be idle, have leisure or opportunity”), German Muße (“leisure”). More at empty.
More words from Middle English, Old French, Vulgar Latin
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Bulgarian забавля́вам, развлича́м
- забавля́вам (zabavljávam)to entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- развлича́м (razvličám)to entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- разсмивам (razsmivam)to cause laughter
Catalan divertir, entretenir
- divertirto entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- entretenirto entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- distreureto entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
Czech bavit
- bavitto entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
Dutch amuseren, amuseren
- amuserento entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- amuserento cause laughter
Esperanto amuzi
- amuzito entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
Finnish viihdyttää, huvittaa
- viihdyttääto entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- huvittaato cause laughter
- naurattaato cause laughter
- hauskuuttaato cause laughter
French amuser
- amuserto entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
German amüsieren, vergnügen
- amüsierento entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- vergnügento entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- belustigento cause laughter
- erheiternto cause laughter
Hebrew שִׁעֲשֵׁעַ
- שִׁעֲשֵׁעַ (shi'ashéa)to entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
Hindi बहलाना
- बहलाना (bahlānā)to entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
Hungarian szórakoztat, mulattat
- szórakoztatto entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- mulattatto cause laughter
- nevettetto cause laughter
- megnevettetto cause laughter
Italian svagare
- svagareto entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
Latin oblectō, dēlectō
- oblectōto entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- dēlectōto entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
Māori whakangahau, whakangāoko
- whakangahauto entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- whakangāokoto entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- whakakatato cause laughter
- whakakatakatato cause laughter
Norwegian Bokmål more
- moreto entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
Polish bawić, zabawiać
- bawićto entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- zabawiaćto entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- rozbawićto entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- rozerwaćto entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- śmieszyćto cause laughter
- rozśmieszaćto cause laughter
- rozśmieszyćto cause laughter
- bawićto cause laughter
Portuguese entreter, divertir
- entreterto entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- divertirto entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- divertirto cause laughter
Romanian amuza
- amuzato entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
Russian забавля́ть, позаба́вить
- забавля́ть (zabavljátʹ)to entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- позаба́вить (pozabávitʹ)to entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- развлека́ть (razvlekátʹ)to entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- развле́чь (razvléčʹ)to entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- смеши́ть (smešítʹ)to cause laughter
- рассмеши́ть (rassmešítʹ)to cause laughter
- насмеши́ть (nasmešítʹ)to cause laughter
- завлека́ть (zavlekátʹ)archaic: to keep in expectation
- завле́чь (zavléčʹ)archaic: to keep in expectation
- отвлека́ть (otvlekátʹ)archaic: to keep in expectation
- отвле́чь (otvléčʹ)archaic: to keep in expectation
Slovak baviť, zabávať
- baviťto entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- zabávaťto entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
Spanish entretener, distraer
- entretenerto entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- distraerto entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- embebecerto entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- divertirto cause laughter
Turkish eğlemek, oyalamak
- eğlemekto entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- oyalamakto entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
Ukrainian розважа́ти, забавля́ти
- розважа́ти (rozvažáty)to entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- забавля́ти (zabavljáty)to entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
- ба́вити (bávyty)to entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
Welsh diddori
- diddorito entertain or occupy in a pleasant manner
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with amuse
Cite this entry
amuse. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/amuse
“amuse.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/amuse. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “amuse,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/amuse.
Source: amuse on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.