occupy

American  

[ok-yuh-pahy] / ˈɒk yəˌpaɪ /

verb (used with object)

occupied, occupying

1. to take or fill up (space, time, etc.).

   I occupied my evenings reading novels.

2. to engage or employ the mind, energy, or attention of.

   Occupy the children with a game while I prepare dinner.

   Synonyms:

   busy , use

3. to be a resident or tenant of; dwell in.

   We occupied the same house for 20 years.

4. to hold (a position, office, etc.).

5. to take possession and control of (a place), as by military invasion.

   Synonyms:

   seize , capture

6. Usually Occupy to participate in a protest about (a social or political issue), as by taking possession or control of buildings or public places that are symbolic of the issue.

   Let’s Occupy our voting rights!

   The Occupy Wall Street movement of late 2011 was a protest against economic inequality.

---

verb (used without object)

occupied, occupying

1. to take or hold possession.

2. Usually Occupy to participate in a protest about a social or political issue.

adjective

1. Usually Occupy of or relating to a protest about a social or political issue, as in Occupy movement, Occupy protest, and Occupy candidate:

   the Occupy movement for social justice.

occupy British  

/ ˈɒkjʊˌpaɪ /

verb

1. to live or be established in (a house, flat, office, etc)

2. (often passive) to keep (a person) busy or engrossed; engage the attention of

3. (often passive) to take up (a certain amount of time or space)

4. to take and hold possession of, esp as a demonstration

   students occupied the college buildings

5. to fill or hold (a position or rank)

---

Related Words

See have.

Other Word Forms

• misoccupy verb
• occupiable adjective
• occupier noun
• reoccupy verb (used with object)

Etymology

Origin of occupy

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English occupien, from Middle French occuper, from Latin occupāre “to seize, take hold, take up, make one's own,” equivalent to oc- oc- + -cup-, combining form of capere “to take, seize” + -āre infinitive suffix

Example Sentences

Workers at General Motors occupied factories for 44 days in Flint, controlling irreplaceable auto body dies.

From The Wall Street Journal

The bowl occupies a rare pricing sweet spot: genuinely fresh food for only a couple of dollars more than fast food—and still far less than a sit-down entree once you add tax and tip.

From The Wall Street Journal

"It also created new possibilities for them to step into public roles and occupy civic spaces in ways that had rarely been seen before."

From BBC

Then he returns to the thoughts that really occupy his mind: The ball is a ball and is round.

From The Wall Street Journal

It’s just crazy the way people can perceive themselves as having been short-changed when they’ve been occupying an enormous side of privilege for a long time.

From Salon

Related Words

• cover
• establish
• fill
• hold
• inhabit
• involve
• keep
• maintain
• own
• populate
• remain
• sit
• stay