preoccupy
verb
pre·oc·cu·py
(ˌ)prē-ˈä-kyə-ˌpī 
preoccupied; preoccupying; preoccupies
1
: to engage or engross the interest or attention of beforehand or preferentially
2
: to take possession of or fill beforehand or before another
Examples of preoccupy in a Sentence
The question of life after death has preoccupied many philosophers.
Recent Examples on the Web
The population, then at around 211 million, continued to expand, and many who at first worried for the carrying capacity of the planet became preoccupied with walling off the country and keeping the global population at bay.
—
Abrahm Lustgarten, ProPublica, 19 Oct. 2024
Whereas The Remainder was preoccupied with the ghosts of a violent dictatorship, Clean exposes more contemporary cultural fault lines that are just as destabilizing and, in their immediacy, more urgent.
—Carolina A. Miranda, The Atlantic, 18 Oct. 2024
Liberal Democrats who criticized Harris during her unsuccessful 2020 presidential campaign have been less vocal about their concerns four years later, preoccupied with the political threat posed by Trump.
—Naomi Lim, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 5 Oct. 2024
Butterworth is preoccupied with doubles, particularly the kind of copy that has the power to sap its original.
—Helen Shaw, The New Yorker, 3 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for preoccupy 
Abrahm Lustgarten, ProPublica, 19 Oct. 2024
Whereas The Remainder was preoccupied with the ghosts of a violent dictatorship, Clean exposes more contemporary cultural fault lines that are just as destabilizing and, in their immediacy, more urgent.
—Carolina A. Miranda, The Atlantic, 18 Oct. 2024
Liberal Democrats who criticized Harris during her unsuccessful 2020 presidential campaign have been less vocal about their concerns four years later, preoccupied with the political threat posed by Trump.
—Naomi Lim, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 5 Oct. 2024
Butterworth is preoccupied with doubles, particularly the kind of copy that has the power to sap its original.
—Helen Shaw, The New Yorker, 3 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for preoccupy
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'preoccupy.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near preoccupy
Cite this Entry
“Preoccupy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/preoccupy. Accessed 30 Oct. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
preoccupy
verb
pre·oc·cu·py
(ˈ)prē-ˈäk-yə-ˌpī
1
: to hold the attention of beforehand
2
: to take possession of before another
preoccupation
noun
(ˌ)prē-ˌäk-yə-ˈpā-shən
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