as in to interest
to hold the attention of
a puzzle will occupy that child for hours
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of occupy
In May 1940, German forces invaded and then occupied the Netherlands, with Belgium and France following shortly thereafter.
—
Time, 30 Sep. 2025
Dash cam footage from Newton’s car revealed someone on the driver’s side of the truck pointed a firearm out the window toward a white van, occupied by Nelson, Fairchild, Thorns and two other juveniles.
—Caroline Zimmerman, Kansas City Star, 30 Sep. 2025
Still, despite the change around him, Lafrenière occupies a fundamentally similar space on the Rangers’ roster; there simply aren’t many players in the mix who have his ceiling.
—The Athletic Nhl, New York Times, 30 Sep. 2025
It’s located near Dadeland Mall in the King Creek’s shopping plaza in the space formerly occupied by Mamma Dora’s.
—Madeleine Marr, Miami Herald, 30 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for occupy
Time, 30 Sep. 2025
Dash cam footage from Newton’s car revealed someone on the driver’s side of the truck pointed a firearm out the window toward a white van, occupied by Nelson, Fairchild, Thorns and two other juveniles.
—Caroline Zimmerman, Kansas City Star, 30 Sep. 2025
Still, despite the change around him, Lafrenière occupies a fundamentally similar space on the Rangers’ roster; there simply aren’t many players in the mix who have his ceiling.
—The Athletic Nhl, New York Times, 30 Sep. 2025
It’s located near Dadeland Mall in the King Creek’s shopping plaza in the space formerly occupied by Mamma Dora’s.
—Madeleine Marr, Miami Herald, 30 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for occupy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for occupy
Verb
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And having fun to develop and nourish the strategy by being open to brand creativity and following advice from our partners, always having the customers interest in mind.—
Samantha Conti,
Footwear News,
29 Sep. 2025
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To read only the chapters that interest you?—
Sophia Rosenfeld
September 26,
Literary Hub,
26 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The sheriff’s office estimated 30 inmates were involved in the incident.—
Jason Green,
Mercury News,
27 Sep. 2025
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Four of the eight firefighters involved in the crash have returned to active hand-crew duty, Hamm said.—
Sydney Barragan,
Oc Register,
27 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The budding businessman was intrigued when its owners put the business up for sale at $27,500 in 1981—and jumped on the opportunity to buy it.—
Emma Burleigh,
Fortune,
1 Oct. 2025
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Earlier this month, Netflix confirmed that Janney and her screen husband Bradley Whitford had been upped to series regulars for season four so expect both to be at the center of all the series intrigue this season.—
Abid Rahman,
HollywoodReporter,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Manheim speaks music fluently, having grown up in New York immersed in the ska scene of the 1990s.—
Shirley Halperin,
Rolling Stone,
1 Oct. 2025
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Bailey immersed himself in the euphoria, even sneaking into a Wicked sing-along at the cinema to get the full fan experience.—
Olivia-Anne Cleary,
Time,
30 Sep. 2025
Verb
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After that, Cornell busied himself with his solo career and other endeavors before committing suicide in 2017.—
Hugh McIntyre,
Forbes.com,
18 Sep. 2025
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Directly after its 1979 revolution, Iran busied itself with internal enemies.—
Graeme Wood,
The Atlantic,
2 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Europe, with its rich past, had fascinated many of its colonial subjects.—
Pankaj Mishra,
Harpers Magazine,
19 Sep. 2025
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David Martill, professor emeritus at the Institute of the Earth and Environment at the University of Portsmouth, was fascinated by the study and UV images.—
Ashley Strickland,
CNN Money,
19 Sep. 2025
Verb
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What first attracted you may be questioned when the Sagittarius moon confronts Venus.—
USA TODAY,
USA Today,
27 Sep. 2025
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Zooming out a little, these centres will act as part of a national industrial policy, with local governments competing to set up their own robot bases to attract companies and funding.—
Christopher McFadden,
Interesting Engineering,
27 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The tri-mode seeker shares targeting information among all three modes, enabling StormBreaker to engage fixed or moving targets at any time of day and in all weather conditions, according to Raytheon.—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
25 Sep. 2025
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The final episode saw Carly and Freddie get engaged, only to be interrupted by her mother, a figure shrouded in mystery throughout the original and reboot shows.—
Anna Kaufman,
USA Today,
25 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Occupy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/occupy. Accessed 2 Oct. 2025.
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