preoccupation
Americannoun
-
the state of being preoccupied, esp mentally
-
something that holds the attention or preoccupies the mind
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of preoccupation
1530–40; < Latin praeoccupātiōn- (stem of praeoccupātiō ) a taking possession beforehand. See pre-, occupation
Explanation
Preoccupation is a state where you're absorbed in something. You may have a preoccupation with video games or Hello Kitty, for example, if you can't keep your mind off those things. We all have our preoccupations: ideas and things that we just can't stop thinking about. Just as an occupation means someone is living somewhere, a preoccupation is an idea that's moved in to our minds. One person's preoccupation might be making more money, while another person's preoccupation could be learning to ride a motorcycle. We can also say that someone who is engrossed or absorbed in something is in a state of preoccupation; they're preoccupied.
Vocabulary lists containing preoccupation
"There Will Come Soft Rains" by Ray Bradbury
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Tuesdays with Morrie
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And Then There Were None
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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.
See Examples For:
“Rear Window” measured the consequences of humanity’s voyeuristic preoccupation with the macabre.
From Salon ● Jul. 22, 2026
The preoccupation with sizes, in particular, was something many international fans remarked about when interviewed by the BBC about their reflections on visiting America.
From BBC ● Jun. 19, 2026
"People taking these drugs for obesity often describe a quieting of 'food noise,' the persistent preoccupation with food that drives overeating," Al-Aly said.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 3, 2026
Horror has long been a preoccupation for Boston.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 27, 2026
His preoccupation with improving the cyclotron condoned sloppy and inattentive experimental work.
From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik
But the preoccupations among the conquistadores are plunder, religious conversions or, in Magellan’s case, an impulse to bring the world to his feet by making it navigable.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 23, 2026
The preoccupations of a regional power are different to the much broader global challenges faced by the US.
From BBC ● Mar. 28, 2026
Mr. Foster dismisses their preoccupations with bionic implants or humanoid robots as MacGuffins—Alfred Hitchcock’s term for a device that momentarily advances a movie plot but ultimately fails to develop into anything.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 30, 2025
On top of those digital-age preoccupations, Russell sought to indict the petty jealousies that exist among men — a subject, he thinks, that remains taboo.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2025
After the war, Hess returned to Princeton and the preoccupations of teaching, but the mysteries of the seafloor continued to occupy a space in his thoughts.
From "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson
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.
