Word.ws English Dictionary

How to use transfix in a sentence

15 example sentences · verb, noun

Transfix means to render motionless, by arousing terror, amazement or awe. Example: “But we may as well accept her story as true, for it is likely she would have been transfixed by the narcissism of the weight lifters.”

Examples of transfix by meaning

verbTo render motionless, by arousing terror, amazement or awe.

  • But we may as well accept her story as true, for it is likely she would have been transfixed by the narcissism of the weight lifters.1973, Norman Mailer, Marilyn: A Biography, page 45

verbTo pierce with a sharp pointed weapon.

  • Then the natives would assemble with spears, and with much shouting would transfix the great startled things as they hurried down to the sea.1919, W[illiam] Somerset Maugham, “chapter 52”, in The Moon and Sixpence, [New York, N.Y.]: Grosset & Dunlap Publishers […], →OCLC

More sentences with transfix

  • Wherever sequential alphabets gained power, cultures became more transfixed by linear time.2019 January 17, RJ Andrews, Info We Trust: How to Inspire the World with Data, page 53. From the entry levidrome
  • We explore the stories because they are transfixing stories, dense and compelling.2017, Andrew Blauner, The Good Book: Writers Reflect on Favorite Bible Passages, Simon and Schuster, →ISBN. From the entry good book
  • Stands of ciboa darken the valleys, and massive tabbas, wide around as Big Ben, transfix the hilltops.1982, TC Boyle, Water Music, Penguin, published 2006, page 94. From the entry ciboa
  • Addison stood midshave, transfixed by the sight.2017, Theo Emery, Hellfire Boys: The Birth of the U.S. Chemical Warfare Service and the Race for the World’s Deadliest Weapons, New York…. From the entry midshave
  • I became transfixed by the '80s.2020 October 21, Jamie Windust, “The Key in the Lock”, in In Their Shoes: Navigating Non-Binary Life, Jessica Kingsley Publishers, →ISBN…. From the entry snatched waist
  • Oh, I'm penitent enough for the Seventh Heaven, but as to kneeling, observe, good friend, how the wicked have transfixed my extremities with nails!2001, Ambrose Bierce, David E. Schultz, S. T. Joshi, The Unabridged Devil's Dictionary, page 256. From the entry unspike
  • I entered theaters where the happy lotus eaters sat slumped in their massage chairs, transfixed by the glowing tridim images—and capered down the aisles.1963, Robert Silverberg, “To See the Invisible Man”, in Earth in Transit, New York, N.Y.: Dell Publishing Co., Inc., published 1976, page 59. From the entry tridim
  • She transfixes us by the destiny that came with Zeus' offense of her mother, awesome Nemesis, who knew the comportment proper to the limitations of all events.2004, Charles E. Scott, “Helen, Heidegger, and the Wisdom of Nemesis”, in Albert A. Anderson, Steven V. Hicks, Lech Witkowski, editors…. From the entry nemetic
  • The blonde whispered something into the ear of her almost transfixed companion, and they rose—he none too steadily, she with a faintly triumphant but gleeless smile.2002, Frank Robert Vivelo, Michael Deal, page 73. From the entry gleeless
  • For Paul Deering in Rochester, New York, the "Rhapsody In Blue" segment was a, quote, "driveway moment," although he writes that the transfixing occurred in his kitchen.[2000 March 5, Analysis: Letters from listeners (radio), via National Public Radio. From the entry driveway moment
  • The Renault burst effortlessly through what turned out to be an anorexic privet, and immediately encountered something more substantial in the form of an astonished and transfixed Cheviot.1999, Christopher Brookmyre, One Fine Day in the Middle of the Night, London: Little, Brown and Company, →ISBN; 1st American edition, New…. From the entry gassy
  • "I thought," Graeme burred at him, transfixing him with shrewd eyes, "that you were cavaliering the Italian girl, Beatrice Cenci or Vittoria Colonna or whatever her name is?"1916, Good Housekeeping, volume 64, page 113. From the entry cavalier
  • Colonel Allen sat transfixed in his jeep, reminiscing as Charlie Company's Jody cadence gradually receded; echoing and re-echoing through honeysuckled foothills he had once traversed as a young officer candidate.2003, William Howard Graley, Of Silent Parades, page 209. From the entry jody cadence

Meaning of transfix

  1. verb To render motionless, by arousing terror, amazement or awe.
  2. verb To pierce with a sharp pointed weapon.
  3. verb To fix or impale.

Full definition of transfix

Questions about transfix in a sentence

How do you use transfix in a sentence?
Transfix is used as a verb and noun. For example: “But we may as well accept her story as true, for it is likely she would have been transfixed by the narcissism of the weight lifters.”
What is a short sentence with transfix?
“I became transfixed by the '80s.”
What does transfix mean?
Transfix means to render motionless, by arousing terror, amazement or awe.

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: transfix (page history and authors) and the entries each sentence comes from. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws chose the sentences, left out offensive ones and quotations older than 1900, and marked the word in each. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this page: “How to use transfix in a sentence.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/sentences/transfix. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.