obsession

noun

äb-ˈse-shən How to pronounce obsession (audio)
Definition of obsessionnext
as in problem
something about which one is constantly thinking or concerned her latest obsession is a movie star who she thinks is very handsome

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of obsession After the first season’s multiverse chaos, the Dessens attempt to settle in a seemingly safe reality while Jason’s obsession with the Box threatens to drag the family straight back into trouble. — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2026 Apart from being a lipstick indicator, the bedazzling craze is one more example of the younger generation’s obsession with the analog economy and consumer culture from over 20 years ago before technology owned their attention. — Sarah Glodek, Fortune, 28 Aug. 2026 That’s the stuff that drives obsessive fans, and those obsessions need to be fed, regularly and well. — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 28 Aug. 2026 Mladic was known for his obsession with his nation's history. — CBS News, 27 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for obsession
Recent Examples of Synonyms for obsession
  1. problem
  2. fascination
  3. preoccupation
  4. fixation
  5. fetish
  6. mania
  7. enthusiasm
Noun
  • By taking stem cells from a host’s own body and encouraging them to differentiate before mixing them with a commercially available, soluble matrix gel, researchers may have cracked the most critical problems in the transplant process.
    — Mike McRae September 02, New Atlas, 3 Sep. 2026
  • Along with the brilliant Sangare, the signing of El Hadji Malick Diouf at left-back addresses a problem area for them.
    — Jacob Whitehead, New York Times, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of problem
Noun
  • The film grew out of Herzog’s fascination with British twins Freda and Greta Chaplin, who became tabloid fodder in the 1980s after a neighbor was granted a restraining order against them.
    — Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 2 Sep. 2026
  • On the one hand, there’s a fascination with collective joy and the forms of vernacular invention that aspire to it; on the other, there’s an underlying melancholy that points to the inevitability of isolation, an epistemology of loneliness.
    — Pablo Larios, Artforum, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of fascination
Noun
  • The result, says Roya, is deepening apathy among her fellow citizens, whose preoccupation now is just getting by.
    — Scott Peterson, Christian Science Monitor, 1 Sep. 2026
  • The loneliness of the long-distance grieving survivalist is the main preoccupation of The Dog Stars, Ridley Scott’s moody, surprisingly sensitive adaptation of Scott Heller’s 2012 novel.
    — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of preoccupation
Noun
  • Each scene includes parallel images, along with between five and 12 convergent fixation image pairs.
    — Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 27 Aug. 2026
  • Robert also identifies the lustful subtext of Bret’s fixation on Robert and Susan together.
    — Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of fixation
Noun
  • Tupper’s Mick, at the mercy of his brittle fetishes, may be the most believable of this quartet.
    — Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 21 July 2026
  • The screen is big, the image is sharp and bright, but Nolan’s visual compositions are dull—just pictures of actors acting, without style or poetry—and his fetish for size is just bombast and vanity.
    — Caroline Mimbs Nyce, New Yorker, 17 July 2026
Definition of fetish
Noun
  • What's your relationship to paparazzi and social media mania, given you’ve been in the spotlight for so long?
    — Kalia Richardson, USA Today, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Other moviegoers adored his campy but somehow restrained mania as the butler in Clue, or delighted in his nasty smarm as the concierge in Home Alone 2.
    — Tom Nichols, The Atlantic, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of mania
Noun
  • The staffers of the Truth Teller start the second season pumped with enthusiasm after their winning night at an Ohio journalism awards ceremony.
    — Julie Hinds, Freep.com, 3 Sep. 2026
  • Organizers are hoping to boost GOP enthusiasm, but the confab is getting a lackluster reception from some in the party.
    — Joey Garrison, USA Today, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of enthusiasm

Browse Nearby Words

obsessing (over)
obsession
obsessional
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Cite this Entry

“Obsession.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/obsession. Accessed 4 Sep. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on obsession

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about obsession

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