as in obsession
something about which one is constantly thinking or concerned
had this bizarre idée fixe that people were spying on her with electromagnetic waves
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Recent Examples of idée fixe
This is perhaps why their partnership remains an idee fixe so many decades later.
—
Washington Post, 19 Mar. 2021
Washington Post, 19 Mar. 2021
Recent Examples of Synonyms for idée fixe
Noun
-
There were no major returning actors or ongoing storylines, save for the Yautja’s somewhat inexplicable obsession with intergalactic trophy hunting, and most attempts to reboot the property failed to explain why this series should exist in the first place.—
Christian Zilko,
IndieWire,
7 Nov. 2025
-
What’s lingering beneath the surface — jealousy, passion, obsession — is brought to life.—
Valerie Mesa,
PEOPLE,
7 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
In addition, the creation of the fetishes, with their bits of bone, dirt, plants, and other objects, also unnerved enslavers and colonists.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
5 Jan. 2026
-
No need to make a fetish out of authenticity.—
Martin Fritz Huber,
Outside,
6 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Liotus says, referring to the Boston socialite with the Venice fixation.—
Wendy Goodman,
Curbed,
10 Jan. 2026
-
May’s fixations include fragmented narratives, portraits of place, boundaries and borders, and collective memory.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
8 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Idée fixe.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/id%C3%A9e%20fixe. Accessed 11 Jan. 2026.
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