as in jealous
intolerant of rivalry or unfaithfulness
he was very possessive of his girlfriend's attention, and it was really starting to annoy her
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Recent Examples of possessive
Not possessive -- possessive and addictive type personality.
—
Rachel Scott, ABC News, 16 Dec. 2025
Not possessive — possessive and addictive type personality.
—Joey Garrison, USA Today, 16 Dec. 2025
The film follows Ren, a 16-year-old Filipino-Italian teenager trapped in his mother Mia’s possessive love, who must break free during a three-day Filipino wake as Typhoon Edith approaches Manila.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 31 Oct. 2025
Some will even feel possessive.
—Georgia Nicols, Denver Post, 12 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for possessive
Rachel Scott, ABC News, 16 Dec. 2025
Not possessive — possessive and addictive type personality.
—Joey Garrison, USA Today, 16 Dec. 2025
The film follows Ren, a 16-year-old Filipino-Italian teenager trapped in his mother Mia’s possessive love, who must break free during a three-day Filipino wake as Typhoon Edith approaches Manila.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 31 Oct. 2025
Some will even feel possessive.
—Georgia Nicols, Denver Post, 12 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for possessive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for possessive
jealous
Adjective
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The theorist Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick examined the extent to which jealous imitation drives all manner of same-sex relations, straight and gay.—
Spencer Kornhaber,
The Atlantic,
27 Mar. 2026
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Seeing a former flame with someone else brings out a jealous bitterness that eats at Lou, which is hard not to relate to as a millennial audience member with a heart.—
Glenn Garner,
Deadline,
17 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Possessive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/possessive. Accessed 1 Apr. 2026.
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