obsess
/əbˈsɛs/ verb
Forms obsesses obsessing obsessed
- verb (passive voice, constructed with "with") To be preoccupied with a single topic or emotion. “Some people are obsessed with sports.”
- verb (transitive) To dominate the thoughts of someone. “Thoughts of her obsess my every waking moment.”
- verb (intransitive, colloquial, construed with over) To think or talk obsessively about. “Stop obsessing over it, will you!”
Synonyms
Etymology
From Latin obsessus, perfect passive participle of obsideō (“sit on or in, remain, besiege”), from ob- (“before”) + sedeō (“to sit”); see sit, session, etc.; compare assess, possess.
Webster’s 1913
Etymology [L. obsessus, p.p. of obsidere to besiege; ob (see Ob-) + sedere to sit.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “obsess”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details