Captivé

Captivé is a French adjective and the past participle of the verb captiver. It designates something or someone that holds one’s attention intensely, often with admiration or fascination. In everyday use, it conveys a strong sense of engagement, beyond merely being interesting. It can describe people, performances, works of art, or events that draw and sustain interest.

Etymology and sense: captiver comes from Latin captivare, related to captivus “captive.” The figurative sense of “capturing” attention evolved into the meaning of fascination or enchantment. The word is closely linked to other forms such as captivant, captivante, and captivation in related contexts.

Forms and grammar: the base adjective agrees in gender and number with the noun it modifies. masculine singular is captivé; feminine singular is captivée; masculine plural is captivés; feminine plural is captivées. As a past participle used with être or as a participial adjective, it commonly appears in sentences like Le public est captivé (the audience is captivated) or Le discours a captivé le public (the speech captivated the audience). The related present participle captivant (captivating) and the feminine form captivée also appear in usage.

Usage and nuance: captiver implies a strong, sustained attention or charm that holds interest over time. It is stronger than simply “interesting” and often conveys a sense of enchantment or persuasive appeal. In marketing, journalism, and culture, captiver l’audience is a frequent collocation.

See also: captivation, captiver, captivant, captivante.