obsessive

ob·ses·sive

adjective \äb-ˈse-siv, əb-\

Definition of OBSESSIVE

1

a : tending to cause obsession

b : excessive often to an unreasonable degree

2

: of, relating to, or characterized by obsession : deriving from obsession

— obsessive noun

— ob·ses·sive·ly adverb

— ob·ses·sive·ness noun

Examples of OBSESSIVE

1. Many dancers are obsessive about their weight.
2. He is an obsessive workaholic who never stops thinking about his job.
3. an obsessive interest in space travel
4. The new therapy is supposed to help people control their obsessive thoughts.

First Known Use of OBSESSIVE

1901

Related to OBSESSIVE

Synonyms

besetting, driven, impulsive, obsessional, compulsive

Related Words

irrepressible, uncontrollable; automatic, instinctive, involuntary, knee-jerk, reflex, spontaneous; conditioned, mechanical; unconscious, unthinking, unwitting; capricious, unpredictable, whimsical

Near Antonyms

unforced, voluntary, willful (or wilful); controllable, manageable, resistible

Other Psychology Terms

fetish, hypochondria, intelligence, mania, narcissism, neurosis, pathological, psychosis, schadenfreude, subliminal

Rhymes with OBSESSIVE

aggressive, caressive, compressive, concessive, degressive, depressive, digressive, excessive, expressive, impressive, ingressive, oppressive, possessive, progressive, recessive, regressive, successive, suppressive, transgressive