mesmerize
MEZ-muh-rize · verb
English
Origin
Mesmerize is a back-formation from mesmerism, formed by adding -ize to it. It's first attested in 1829.
Journey
The facts don't give a documented shift in meaning — only that the verb was carved out of the noun mesmerism shortly after that noun existed.
Related words
Its closest relative is mesmerism itself, the noun it was stripped down from.