completely fascinated or attracted by something so much that you can't look away or stop thinking about it.
From the verb 'rivet,' which comes from Old French 'river' meaning 'to clinch or fasten.' Originally referred to fastening metal with rivets, but the metaphorical sense of 'holding attention firmly' developed because rivets hold things tightly together.
The word perfectly captures how our attention works—just like a rivet permanently fastens two pieces of metal, certain stories or ideas become fixed in our minds and we can't stop thinking about them.
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