fixation

American  

[fik-sey-shuhn] / fɪkˈseɪ ʃən /

noun

1. the act of fixing or the state of being fixed.

2. Chemistry.

   1. reduction from a volatile or fluid to a stable or solid form.

   2. the process of converting atmospheric nitrogen into a useful compound, as a nitrate fertilizer.

3. Photography. the process of rendering an image permanent by removal of light-sensitive silver halides.

4. Psychoanalysis. a partial arrest of emotional and instinctual development at an early point in life, due to a severe traumatic experience or an overwhelming gratification.

5. a preoccupation with one subject, issue, etc.; obsession.

   All her life she had a fixation on stories of violent death.

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fixation British  

/ fɪkˈseɪʃən /

noun

1. the act of fixing or the state of being fixed

2. a preoccupation or obsession

3. psychol

   1. the act of fixating

   2. (in psychoanalytical schools) a strong attachment of a person to another person or an object in early life

4. chem

   1. the conversion of nitrogen in the air into a compound, esp a fertilizer

   2. the conversion of a free element into one of its compounds

5. the reduction of a substance from a volatile or fluid form to a nonvolatile or solid form

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Other Word Forms

• nonfixation noun

Etymology

Origin of fixation

1350–1400; Middle English fixacion < Medieval Latin fixātiōn- (stem of fixātiō ) a reduction to a fixed state. See fix, -ation

Example Sentences

When a promotion affords her a workspace, she cultivates a fixation with paperweights, which help keep her daydreaming grounded.

From The Wall Street Journal

It took coming out and years of evaluating my gender identity to uncover the question stirring at the root of my fixation: Do I want Augustus Waters, or do I want to be Augustus Waters?

From Salon

From the moment of his birth, mere weeks after his father was elected president, the son of John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Kennedy was a national fixation.

From Los Angeles Times

But he fumbles with the fixation on Los Angeles wellness culture.

From Los Angeles Times

For some, it’s a tale of toxic fixation, for others a revenge plot or a tragedy.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• fascination
• infatuation
• preoccupation