Preoccupied

How to spell preoccupied

11 letters · 4 syllables

How to pronounce preoccupied

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does preoccupied mean?

1. adjectiveSo absorbed by a thought or worry that you pay little attention to anything else.
2. verbTook or occupied something in advance, before another could; or filled the mind beforehand.

Preoccupied in a sentence

• adjective

  He seemed preoccupied during the meeting and barely heard the question.

• verb

  Worries about the mortgage preoccupied her thoughts for weeks before the move.

• adjective

  She was too preoccupied with the looming deadline to enjoy the dinner.

• verb

  The early arrivals had preoccupied every good seat by the time we got there.

Where does preoccupied come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word grows from the Latin praeoccupare, meaning 'to seize or take hold of in advance', built from prae 'before' and occupare 'to seize, to take possession of'. Occupare itself joined ob 'over, towards' with capere 'to take or grasp', the same root that lurks inside capture and capable. English adopted the verb 'preoccupy' in the sixteenth century, first carrying the literal sense of taking a place or position before anyone else could, as when troops preoccupied a hilltop. From there the meaning drifted inward: a thought or worry could 'occupy' the mind in advance and crowd out everything else, which gives us the modern sense of being lost in thought or absorbed by a single concern. The double c comes straight from the Latin occupare and is the usual spelling trap, while the single p reminds you the second part is plain 'occupy' with 'pre-' bolted on the front.

How the word is built

• pre- (before)
• occupy (from Latin occupare: to seize, take hold of)
• -ied (past/adjective ending)