preoccupation
/priˌɒkjuˈpeɪʃn/ (bre, ipa) · /priˌɑːkjuˈpeɪʃn/ (ame, ipa) · /(ˌ)prē-ˌä-kyə-ˈpā-shən/ (ame, mw)
preoccupation — noun
- preoccupationsingular
- preoccupationsplural
1. a topic, person, or activity that fills your thoughts so much that you keep retu
a topic, person, or activity that fills your thoughts so much that you keep returning to it whenever your mind is free.
Football was Marcus's main preoccupation during high school.
preoccupation as countable noun naming the topic
Lina's chief preoccupation these days is finding a quiet flat near the office.
chief / main + preoccupation
Money has become a constant preoccupation since Dad lost his job.
The novel explores the everyday preoccupations of three sisters living in Taipei.
Sleep was the new mother's only preoccupation in those first weeks.
- obsession
stronger and often negative; suggests an unhealthy fixation
- fixation
narrower and clinical-sounding; the topic is specific and hard to drop
- fascination
positive curiosity rather than something that crowds out other thoughts
文法句型
preoccupation with + noun
用法筆記
Often appears with adjectives that signal scale or duration (chief, main, constant, lifelong) and is frequently plural when listing several recurring topics that fill someone's mind.
常見錯誤
2. the condition of having your mind so taken up by worry or interest in one thing
the condition of having your mind so taken up by worry or interest in one thing that you barely notice anything else around you.
Her preoccupation with her sick father made her forget the meeting at three.
preoccupation with + noun
Carlos walked past me on the street, lost in some private preoccupation.
lost in + preoccupation
The country's preoccupation with house prices has shaped every recent election.
Dr. Tanaka noticed a deep preoccupation in the boy's quiet eyes.
Sarah's preoccupation with the lost dog kept her staring out the kitchen window all afternoon.
- absorption
neutral, often positive; suggests pleasant focus rather than worry
- engrossment
formal; emphasises full attention but without the worried tone
- abstraction
literary; the person seems mentally absent rather than worried about something specific
- indifference
complete lack of mental investment in the topic
文法句型
preoccupation with + noun / -ing
用法筆記
Distinguish from sense 1: this sense names the mental state of being absorbed, while sense 1 names the topic that absorbs you. Almost always followed by 'with' when the cause is named.