obsessive

American  

[uhb-ses-iv] / əbˈsɛs ɪv /

adjective

1. being, pertaining to, or resembling an obsession.

   an obsessive fear of illness.

2. causing an obsession.

3. excessive, especially extremely so.

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noun

1. someone who has an obsession or obsessions; a person who thinks or behaves in an obsessive manner.

obsessive British  

/ əbˈsɛsɪv /

adjective

1. psychiatry motivated by a persistent overriding idea or impulse, often associated with anxiety and mental illness

2. continually preoccupied with a particular activity, person, or thing

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noun

1. psychiatry a person subject to obsession

2. a person who is continually preoccupied with a particular activity, person, or thing

Other Word Forms

• nonobsessive adjective
• nonobsessively adverb
• nonobsessiveness noun
• obsessively adverb
• obsessiveness noun

Etymology

Origin of obsessive

First recorded in 1910–15; obsess(ion) + -ive

Explanation

If you rush to the carwash every time a speck of dust lands on your fender, your friends probably describe you as obsessive about keeping your car clean. In other words, you care way too much about your car's cleanliness. Whenever someone is wild about something to an alarming or unnatural extent, you can say they're obsessive. If you go berserk when your neighbor’s soccer ball lands in your flowerbed, your neighbors might think you’re obsessive about your garden. If there’s a person you think about every moment, night and day, you may be obsessive, or maybe you’re just in love.

Example Sentences

Donall, who is also autistic and has obsessive compulsive disorder, currently has a carer come in for an hour each day to get him up and dressed.

From BBC • Apr. 7, 2026

Huerta said they didn’t always agree, but she and Chávez shared a mutual respect and obsessive sense of mission.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 27, 2026

The obsessive search for elephants in your new movie made me wonder if you got nervous about the need to come back with trophy footage.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 16, 2026

In the individual categories, Feinberg said Timothee Chalamet is a clear frontrunner for best actor honors for his portrayal of an obsessive 1950s table tennis star in "Marty Supreme."

From Barron's • Mar. 1, 2026

My life revolves around an obsessive regimen and percentages, and given that I was just in surgery, the risk never seems to go down.

From "Five Feet Apart" by Rachael Lippincott

Related Words

• bigoted
• dogmatic
• enthusiastic
• fervent
• frenzied
• impassioned
• narrow-minded
• passionate
• rabid
• single-minded
• stubborn
• violent
• zealous