possession

American  

[puh-zesh-uhn] / pəˈzɛʃ ən /

noun

possessions plural

1. the act or fact of possessing.

   Synonyms:

   occupation, tenure

2. the state of being possessed.

3. ownership.

4. Law. actual holding or occupancy, either with or without rights of ownership.

5. a thing possessed.

   He packed all his possessions into one trunk.

6. possessions, property or wealth.

7. a territorial dominion of a state.

8. Sports.

   1. physical control of the ball or puck by a player or team.

      He didn't have full possession when he was tackled.

   2. the right of a team to put the ball into play.

      They had possession after the other team sank a free throw.

9. control over oneself, one's mind, etc.

10. domination, actuation, or obsession by a feeling, idea, etc.

11. the feeling or idea itself.

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possession British  

/ pəˈzɛʃən /

noun

1. the act of possessing or state of being possessed

   in possession of the crown

2. anything that is owned or possessed

3. (plural) wealth or property

4. the state of being controlled or dominated by or as if by evil spirits

5. the physical control or occupancy of land, property, etc, whether or not accompanied by ownership

   to take possession of a house

6. a territory subject to a foreign state or to a sovereign prince

   colonial possessions

7. sport control of the ball, puck, etc, as exercised by a player or team

   he lost possession in his own half

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Synonym Usage

See custody.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonpossession
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• possessions
  plural

Etymology

Origin of possession

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, from Latin possessiōn-, stem of possessiō “occupancy, act of occupying,” from possess(us) “occupied” (past participle of possidēre “to have in one's control, occupy,” from pos-, combining form of pot(is) “able” + -sidēre, combining form of sedēre “to sit”) + -iō -ion; see also host ¹, sit ¹

Explanation

A possession is something that belongs to you. If you've got a special rubber ducky, that’s one of your possessions, and it may even be your prized possession. Possession is all about control: if you have possession of something, you own it, or have your hands on it. If your house keys are in your possession, you know where they are. In soccer being in possession means having control of the ball; in hockey, it’s having your stick on the puck. A possession can also be a territory controlled by another government, as Puerto Rico is a possession of the United States.

Example Sentences

“I am afraid to own a Body— / I am afraid to own a Soul— / Profound—precarious Property— / Possession, not optional—” There it is, captured in four lines by Emily Dickinson, the human condition.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 9, 2026

Possession of a police scanner is not illegal in New Zealand, but distributing or acting on information heard on it is a crime.

From BBC • Mar. 9, 2026

Possession is still an important part of their game, but not quite as significant as it used to be.

From BBC • Aug. 9, 2024

Seven years later came her breakthrough with Possession, which became a bestseller and won the coveted Booker Prize for Fiction the same year.

From Reuters • Nov. 17, 2023

Possession of a newspaper was a serious charge.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela

Related Words

• custody