From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Mesmerize \Mes"mer*ize\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mesmerized; p.
pr. & vb. n. Mesmerizing.] [Also spelled mesmerise.]
1. To bring into a state of mesmeric sleep; to hypnotize.
[1913 Webster]
2. To produce an intense fascination in; to spellbind.
[PJC]
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
mesmerizing
adj 1: attracting and holding interest as if by a spell; "read
the bedtime story in a hypnotic voice"; "she had a warm
mesmeric charm"; "the sheer force of his presence was
mesmerizing"; "a spellbinding description of life in
ancient Rome" [syn: hypnotic, mesmeric,
mesmerizing, spellbinding]