Obsession — meaning, pronunciation & more

Definition

an irrational motive for performing trivial or repetitive actions, even against your will

an unhealthy and compulsive preoccupation with something or someone

Pronunciation

🇺🇸American English

/əbsˈɛʃən/

🇬🇧British English

/ɒbsˈɛʃən/

🇮🇳Indian English

/ɒbsˈɛʃən/

3 syllables Say it as /əbsˈɛʃən/.

Examples

her compulsion to wash her hands repeatedly

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

fixation compulsion

Parts of Speech

noun	an irrational motive for performing trivial or repetitive actions, even against your will “her compulsion to wash her hands repeatedly”
noun	an unhealthy and compulsive preoccupation with something or someone

Word Forms

compulsive	adjective	caused by or suggestive of psychological compulsion
compulsive	noun	a person with a compulsive disposition; someone who feels compelled to do certain things
obsessional	adjective	characterized by or constituting an obsession
obsess	verb	be preoccupied with something
fixate	verb	attach (oneself) to a person or thing in a neurotic way

Around the World

Europe

🇩🇪German

Besessenheit

ein irrationales Motiv, triviale oder sich wiederholende Handlungen auszuführen, auch gegen Ihren Willen

🇪🇸Spanish

obsesión

un motivo irracional para realizar acciones triviales o repetitivas, incluso en contra de su voluntad

🇮🇹Italian

ossessione

un motivo irrazionale per compiere azioni banali o ripetitive, anche contro la tua volontà

🇳🇱Dutch

obsessie

een irrationeel motief om triviale of repetitieve handelingen uit te voeren, zelfs tegen uw wil

🇵🇹Portuguese

obsessão

um motivo irracional para realizar ações triviais ou repetitivas, mesmo contra a sua vontade

🇷🇺Russian

одержимость

иррациональный мотив для совершения тривиальных или повторяющихся действий, даже против вашей воли

India

🇮🇳Hindi

जुनून

आपकी इच्छा के विरुद्ध भी, तुच्छ या दोहराए जाने वाले कार्य करने का एक तर्कहीन मकसद

🇧🇩Bengali

আবেশ

এমনকি আপনার ইচ্ছার বিরুদ্ধে তুচ্ছ বা পুনরাবৃত্তিমূলক কর্ম সম্পাদনের জন্য একটি অযৌক্তিক উদ্দেশ্য

🇮🇳Tamil

தொல்லை

உங்கள் விருப்பத்திற்கு எதிராகவும், அற்பமான அல்லது மீண்டும் மீண்டும் செயல்களைச் செய்வதற்கான பகுத்தறிவற்ற நோக்கம்

🇮🇳Telugu

ముట్టడి

మీ ఇష్టానికి వ్యతిరేకంగా కూడా పనికిమాలిన లేదా పునరావృత చర్యలకు అహేతుకమైన ఉద్దేశ్యం

🇮🇳Marathi

ध्यास

अगदी तुमच्या इच्छेविरुद्ध क्षुल्लक किंवा पुनरावृत्ती करणाऱ्या कृती करण्याचा तर्कहीन हेतू

🇮🇳Gujarati

વળગાડ

તમારી ઇચ્છા વિરુદ્ધ પણ, તુચ્છ અથવા પુનરાવર્તિત ક્રિયાઓ કરવા માટેનો અતાર્કિક હેતુ

🇮🇳Kannada

ಗೀಳು

ನಿಮ್ಮ ಇಚ್ಛೆಗೆ ವಿರುದ್ಧವಾಗಿಯೂ ಸಹ ಕ್ಷುಲ್ಲಕ ಅಥವಾ ಪುನರಾವರ್ತಿತ ಕ್ರಿಯೆಗಳನ್ನು ಮಾಡಲು ಅಭಾಗಲಬ್ಧ ಉದ್ದೇಶ

🇮🇳Malayalam

അഭിനിവേശം

നിങ്ങളുടെ ഇഷ്ടത്തിന് വിരുദ്ധമായി പോലും നിസ്സാരമോ ആവർത്തിച്ചുള്ളതോ ആയ പ്രവൃത്തികൾ ചെയ്യുന്നതിനുള്ള യുക്തിരഹിതമായ പ്രേരണ

🇮🇳Punjabi

ਜਨੂੰਨ

ਮਾਮੂਲੀ ਜਾਂ ਦੁਹਰਾਉਣ ਵਾਲੀਆਂ ਕਾਰਵਾਈਆਂ ਕਰਨ ਲਈ ਇੱਕ ਤਰਕਹੀਣ ਇਰਾਦਾ, ਭਾਵੇਂ ਤੁਹਾਡੀ ਇੱਛਾ ਦੇ ਵਿਰੁੱਧ

🇵🇰Urdu

جنون

آپ کی مرضی کے خلاف بھی، معمولی یا بار بار کام کرنے کا ایک غیر معقول مقصد

East & Southeast Asia

🇨🇳Chinese

痴迷

执行琐碎或重复行为的非理性动机，甚至违背您的意愿

🇯🇵Japanese

強迫観念

自分の意志に反してでも、些細な行為や反復的な行為を実行する不合理な動機

🇰🇷Korean

집착

자신의 의지에 반하더라도 사소하거나 반복적인 행동을 수행하려는 비합리적인 동기

🇻🇳Vietnamese

nỗi ám ảnh

động cơ phi lý để thực hiện những hành động tầm thường hoặc lặp đi lặp lại, thậm chí trái với ý muốn của bạn

🇹🇭Thai

ความหลงใหล

แรงจูงใจที่ไร้เหตุผลในการดำเนินการเล็กๆ น้อยๆ หรือการกระทำซ้ำๆ แม้จะขัดต่อความประสงค์ของคุณก็ตาม

🇮🇩Indonesian

obsesi

motif yang tidak rasional untuk melakukan tindakan sepele atau berulang-ulang, bahkan bertentangan dengan keinginan Anda

🇵🇭Filipino

pagkahumaling

isang hindi makatwiran na motibo para sa pagsasagawa ng walang kabuluhan o paulit-ulit na mga aksyon, kahit na labag sa iyong kalooban

🇲🇾Malay

taksub

motif yang tidak rasional untuk melakukan tindakan remeh atau berulang, walaupun bertentangan dengan kehendak anda

Middle East

🇸🇦Arabic

هوس

دافع غير عقلاني للقيام بأفعال تافهة أو متكررة، حتى ضد إرادتك

🇮🇷Persian

وسواس

انگیزه غیرمنطقی برای انجام کارهای بی اهمیت یا تکراری، حتی بر خلاف میل شما

🇹🇷Turkish

takıntı

İsteğiniz dışında bile önemsiz veya tekrarlayan eylemler gerçekleştirmek için mantıksız bir neden

🇮🇱Hebrew

דִבּוּק

מניע לא הגיוני לביצוע פעולות טריוויאליות או חוזרות, אפילו בניגוד לרצונך

Test Yourself1 / 3

What is the primary definition of the word 'obsession'?

The primary meaning of 'obsession' is 'an irrational motive for performing trivial or repetitive actions, even against your will'.

Which of the following sentences uses the word 'obsession' in a grammatically correct way?

Using 'obsession' in a noun/adjective form makes the first sentence correct.

In which domain is the word 'obsession' most likely to appear as standard vocabulary?

'obsession' is a standard word used primarily in general literature and formal communications.

Community Poll1 / 6

How often do you encounter the word 'obsession' in your daily reading?

Very Often

Occasionally

Rarely

Never

Do you find 'obsession' easy to spell?

Yes, very easy

Somewhat easy

A bit confusing

Extremely hard

In your opinion, does the word 'obsession' have a positive, neutral, or gloomy tone?

Positive

Neutral

Gloomy

Vibrant

Which age group is most likely to use 'obsession' in regular conversations?

Kids (3-12)

Teens (13-19)

Adults (20-60)

Seniors (60+)

How likely are you to use 'obsession' in a professional email?

Very likely

Somewhat likely

Not very likely

Never

Would you classify 'obsession' as formal, casual, or slang?

Formal

Casual

Slang

Archaic

Pick an option to see how others voted