obese
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of obese
First recorded in 1645–55; from Latin obēsus, adjective use of past participle of obedere, obesse (unrecorded) “to eat away,” from ob- ob- + edere, esse “to eat” ( see also eat)
Explanation
Obese means excessively fat. In medical terms, it means you have a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or more, at which point your body's excess fat begins to threaten your health. In the last third of the 20th century and into the 21st, increasing numbers of Americans are obese, in what health professionals call "an obesity epidemic"; they attribute it to rising portion-sizes, increased consumption of processed food, the demise of family meals, and food marketing, among other factors.
Vocabulary lists containing obese
Burning Blue
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Vocabulary Video Contest (2013) - List 2
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Articles on Nutrition
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"Having weak leg muscles and being overweight or obese increases a person's risk for knee osteoarthritis," Cheng said.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 20, 2026
During studies, overweight or obese patients with type 2 diabetes lost an average of nearly 13% of their body weight after 80 weeks using a four-milligram dose.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
As a morbidly obese young adult, I considered him one of my “big three,” along with John Candy and Chris Farley.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
There are 14 million adults classified as obese, despite successive governments launching 14 separate obesity strategies over the past three decades.
From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2026
So if you wonder why Americans are so obese, consider the fact that waitresses both express their humanity and earn their tips through the covert distribution of fats.
From "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America" by Barbara Ehrenreich
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
