ravish
ravish — verb
1. to affect someone with such powerful happiness or emotional pleasure that they f
to affect someone with such powerful happiness or emotional pleasure that they feel completely taken over — typically used of the effect of art, music, nature, or great beauty on a person
The audience sat in silence, ravished by the pianist's final movement.
ravished by + [work of art]
At sunset on the cliff, Mira felt ravished by the wild beauty of the coastline.
The gallery owner hoped the paintings would ravish every visitor with their bold colours.
Eshe's novel was so beautifully written that critics wrote of being ravished by her prose.
As the choir's voices rose through the old cathedral, the congregation sat ravished and still.
- repel
to cause strong dislike or disgust — the opposite of being captivated by beauty
文法句型
ravish + noun phrase (the senses, the heart)
be ravished by + noun phrase (beauty, music, art)
用法筆記
This sense is now rare in everyday conversation and mainly appears in literary or formal writing. The passive form (be ravished by) is more common than the active voice.
常見錯誤
2. to make a person — especially a woman or a girl — take part in a sexual act by u
to make a person — especially a woman or a girl — take part in a sexual act by using force, without that person's agreement; an older word now mostly replaced by much more common 'rape'
The novel describes a time when soldiers would ravish women in conquered towns.
historical context: soldiers + ravish + women in wartime
In old legal documents, the word 'ravish' was used where courts now use 'rape'.
legal register: 'ravish' replaced by 'rape' in modern usage
Historians have documented how invading armies often ravished local women as an act of terror.
The archivist found an old court record that used 'ravished' to describe the assault.
- rape
the standard modern word; direct and widely used in law, news, and conversation
- violate
broader in meaning — can refer to any form of sexual assault or even non-sexual invasion of a person's rights or dignity
- assault
the broadest of the three; covers any physical attack, and in legal English 'sexual assault' specifies the nature of the crime
文法句型
ravish + noun phrase (a woman, a girl)
be ravished by + noun phrase (an attacker, a soldier)
用法筆記
This sense is now most commonly expressed with the word 'rape'. 'Ravish' sounds old-fashioned or formal and is rarely used in modern news reporting or legal contexts. The passive form (be ravished by [attacker]) is typical in historical descriptions.