preoccupy

verb

pre·​oc·​cu·​py (ˌ)prē-ˈä-kyə-ˌpī 

preoccupied; preoccupying; preoccupies

transitive verb

1

: to engage or engross the interest or attention of beforehand or preferentially

2

: to take possession of or fill beforehand or before another

Examples of preoccupy in a Sentence

The question of life after death has preoccupied many philosophers.

Recent Examples on the Web

In other versions, the demon preoccupies himself with people who’ve fallen asleep in church, carefully noting down every snore. —JSTOR Daily, 31 Oct. 2025

Heisenberg’s wife noticed that in the fall of 1941 he was preoccupied with thinking through the possible scenarios. —Literary Hub, 23 Oct. 2025

In a cinematic landscape preoccupied with noise and spectacle, Kelly Reichardt has built a three-decade career out of embracing the quiet. —Lisa Wong MacAbasco, Vogue, 20 Oct. 2025

What issue will have preoccupied both managers during the break? —Carl Anka, New York Times, 19 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Latin praeoccupare, literally, to seize in advance, from prae- + occupare to seize, occupy

First Known Use

1567, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for preoccupy

• acidify
• alveoli
• areolae
• demystify
• detoxify
• disqualify
• diversify
• electrify
• exemplify
• fasciculi
• identify
• indemnify

Kids Definition

preoccupy

verb

pre·​oc·​cu·​py (ˈ)prē-ˈäk-yə-ˌpī 

1

: to hold the attention of beforehand

2

: to take possession of before another

preoccupation

(ˌ)prē-ˌäk-yə-ˈpā-shən

noun