¹trance

noun \ˈtran(t)s\

: a state that is like being asleep except that you can move and respond to questions and commands like a person who is awake

: a state in which you are not aware of what is happening around you because you are thinking of something else

Full Definition of TRANCE

: stupor, daze

: a sleeplike state (as of deep hypnosis) usually characterized by partly suspended animation with diminished or absent sensory and motor activity

: a state of profound abstraction or absorption

— trance·like \-ˌlīk\ adjective

See trance defined for English-language learners

See trance defined for kids

Origin of TRANCE

Middle English traunce, from Anglo-French transe death, coma, rapture, from transir to depart, die, from Latin transire to cross, pass by — more at transient

First Known Use: 14th century

Related to TRANCE

Synonyms: daydreaming, study, reverie, woolgathering

²trance

transitive verb

trancedtranc·ing

Definition of TRANCE

: entrance, enrapture

First Known Use of TRANCE

circa 1598

Rhymes with TRANCE

chance, dance, glance, lance, prance, trans

TRANCELIKE Defined for Kids

trance

noun \ˈtrans\

Definition of TRANCE for Kids

: a condition like sleep (as deep hypnosis)

: a state of being so deeply absorbed in thought about something as to be unaware of anything else

: stupor <What with the brandy and the venison … I fell into a kind of trance … — Robert Louis Stevenson, Kidnapped>

Medical Dictionary

trance

noun \ˈtran(t)s\

Medical Definition of TRANCE

: a sleeplike altered state of consciousness (as of deep hypnosis) usually characterized by partly suspended animation with diminished or absent sensory and motor activity and subsequent lack of recall

: a state of profound abstraction or absorption

—trance·like \-ˌlīk\ adjective