Etymology

obsess

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Today it means: To be preoccupied with a single topic or emotion. Full definition →

Latin obsessus
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The story

  1. Latin · derived fromobsessus
  2. English todayobsess

From Latin obsessus, perfect passive participle of obsideō (“sit on or in, remain, besiege”), from ob- (“before”) + sedeō (“to sit”); see sit, session, etc.; compare assess, possess.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.