as in interests
to hold the attention of
a puzzle will occupy that child for hours
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Recent Examples of occupies
The celestial equator is just a projection of Earth’s terrestrial equator onto our sky and occupies the same mathematical plane as Earth’s terrestrial equator.
—
Mike Lynch, Twin Cities, 15 Mar. 2026
Nevada, by Imogen Binnie, occupies a similar place in my own literary imagination.
—Literary Hub, 12 Mar. 2026
Imperfect fleshly reality occupies the stage, the region where bones crack and wounds suppurate, schlumpy humans fall for each other, and jealousy roams murderously free.
—Justin Davidson, Vulture, 11 Mar. 2026
The show occupies the top floor of Perrotin’s Lower East Side flagship, reflecting a fine art practice that spans drawing, sculpture, painting and audio works.
—Kristen Tauer, Footwear News, 11 Mar. 2026
The property occupies a lot of 8,750 square feet.
—Bay Area Home Report, Mercury News, 11 Mar. 2026
Nettspend occupies a corner of the rap that’s quickly gaining greater say in the genre’s shape and texture — a veritable youth subculture.
—Jeff Ihaza, Rolling Stone, 10 Mar. 2026
Seven decades later, as military action once again engulfs Iran, a different president occupies the Oval Office—but the same obsession hangs in the air.
—Vivian Salama, The Atlantic, 6 Mar. 2026
Wrexham currently occupies sixth place in the Championship, the second tier of English soccer, 14 points behind leader Coventry.
—Justin Birnbaum, Sportico.com, 6 Mar. 2026
Mike Lynch, Twin Cities, 15 Mar. 2026
Nevada, by Imogen Binnie, occupies a similar place in my own literary imagination.
—Literary Hub, 12 Mar. 2026
Imperfect fleshly reality occupies the stage, the region where bones crack and wounds suppurate, schlumpy humans fall for each other, and jealousy roams murderously free.
—Justin Davidson, Vulture, 11 Mar. 2026
The show occupies the top floor of Perrotin’s Lower East Side flagship, reflecting a fine art practice that spans drawing, sculpture, painting and audio works.
—Kristen Tauer, Footwear News, 11 Mar. 2026
The property occupies a lot of 8,750 square feet.
—Bay Area Home Report, Mercury News, 11 Mar. 2026
Nettspend occupies a corner of the rap that’s quickly gaining greater say in the genre’s shape and texture — a veritable youth subculture.
—Jeff Ihaza, Rolling Stone, 10 Mar. 2026
Seven decades later, as military action once again engulfs Iran, a different president occupies the Oval Office—but the same obsession hangs in the air.
—Vivian Salama, The Atlantic, 6 Mar. 2026
Wrexham currently occupies sixth place in the Championship, the second tier of English soccer, 14 points behind leader Coventry.
—Justin Birnbaum, Sportico.com, 6 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for occupies
Verb
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And along with gender and empowerment, there’s also something about having bright colors and a lot of grief on stage that interests me.—
Jared Kaufman,
Twin Cities,
8 Mar. 2026
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The Supreme Court only grants review to about 1% of petitions, but one scenario where the odds are higher involves federal circuit splits—especially when the number of people impacted is considerable and when the legal question interests the justices.—
Michael McCann,
Sportico.com,
26 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The process immerses the deceased in a pressurized water and 5 percent alkaline solution, such as potassium hydroxide, at 150°C (300°F) for several hours.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
3 Mar. 2026
-
The 17,600-seat Sphere doubles as a movie theater and concert arena and features a 160,000-square-foot, curved LED screen that immerses viewers in the show.—
Roger Kisby,
New York Times,
26 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
This is a forever pivot that involves continuous education internally and with our clients.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
17 Mar. 2026
-
The event involves no less than three after-parties, and the film bounces between Nick’s future self and Mike trying to prevent Present Nick from serving him up on a silver platter to Sosa while Jimmy Boy is busy enjoying his newfound freedom to its debauched fullest.—
Stephen Saito,
Variety,
16 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Hopefully, there’s a spot that intrigues you.—
Andrew J. Campa,
Los Angeles Times,
15 Feb. 2026
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The menu has a lot of delicious choices, but the one that intrigues my girlfriend is their overnight oat bowl.—
C.W. Cameron,
AJC.com,
1 Feb. 2026
Verb
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What fascinates me most about this girl gang is the intensity, particularly the narrator’s love for fighting.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
12 Mar. 2026
-
How golfers rely on — and leverage — technology fascinates Skenes, from the numbers culled relative to swing speed and ball flight to how their bodies must be in sync to generate so much club speed.—
Tribune News Service,
The Orlando Sentinel,
23 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Although the area attracts many day hikers and backpackers, its rugged and remote terrain poses significant challenges for emergency responders, who often must hike long distances over steep ground to reach those in need.—
CBS News Atlanta Digital Team,
CBS News,
17 Mar. 2026
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And despite the metro area’s high cost of living, San Francisco still attracts a variety of residents, including everyone from students to tech whizzes to scores of graphic designers.—
Amelia Mularz,
Architectural Digest,
17 Mar. 2026
Verb
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While the former tracks profits and expectations, the latter busies itself with tangible stuff, from jobs and wages to GDP.—
Tristan Bove,
Fortune,
24 Feb. 2026
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Meanwhile, while Miranda busies herself with building a pageant empire, her husband Ray, a pill-popping nurse, has knocked up the 18-year-old granddaughter of one of his hospice patients.—
Ethan Shanfeld,
Variety,
28 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Cooking engages the body in small, repetitive ways.—
Michelle Beadle Holder,
SELF,
16 Mar. 2026
-
The function button engages focus lock (AF-L) with out-of-the-box camera settings, but can be remapped to one of a few dozen functions via the camera menu.—
Jim Fisher,
PC Magazine,
16 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Occupies.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/occupies. Accessed 19 Mar. 2026.
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