preoccupate

P3R1E1O1C3C3U1P3A1T1E1

verb

To influence, to occupy (the mind) in advance; to be preoccupied with.

OriginLatin praeoccupare →
Scrabble 19
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Meanings

verbpreoccupate (third-person singular simple present preoccupates, present participle preoccupating, simple past and past participle preoccupated)

present singular third person preoccupates · participle present preoccupating · participle past preoccupated · past preoccupated · alternative præoccupate

  1. obsoleteTo influence, to occupy (the mind) in advance; to be preoccupied with.

    the mad and fond curiositie of our nature, ammusing it selfe to preoccupate future things, as if it had not enough to doe to digest the present.

    , Folio Society, 2006, vol.1, p.40
  2. obsoleteTo meet in advance; to forestall, pre-empt.

Origin

  1. Latinpraeoccupare
  2. Englishpreoccupate

Borrowed from past participle stem of Latin praeoccupare, from prae- (“pre-”) + occupare (“occupy”); equivalent to pre- + occupate. Doublet of preoccupy.

More words from Latin

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

preoccupate. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/preoccupate

MLA

“preoccupate.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/preoccupate. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “preoccupate,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/preoccupate.

Source: preoccupate on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.