preoccupation
/priˌɒkjuˈpeɪʃn/ (bre, ipa) · /priˌɑːkjuˈpeɪʃn/ (ame, ipa) · /(ˌ)prē-ˌä-kyə-ˈpā-shən/ (ame, mw)
preoccupation — 名詞
- preoccupationsingular
- preoccupationsplural
1. a topic, person, or activity that fills your thoughts so much that you keep retu
心頭大事
佔據心思的人事或話題
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.
高中時期，足球是 Marcus 的心頭大事。
preoccupation as countable noun naming the topic
Lina's chief preoccupation these days is finding a quiet flat near the office.
Lina 最近的關注焦點是在公司附近找一間安靜的公寓。
chief / main + preoccupation
Money has become a constant preoccupation since Dad lost his job.
自從爸爸失業後，錢就成了家裡持續操心的事。
The novel explores the everyday preoccupations of three sisters living in Taipei.
這本小說描寫住在台北的三姊妹日常掛念的種種事情。
Sleep was the new mother's only preoccupation in those first weeks.
頭幾週，睡眠是這位新手媽媽心裡唯一惦記的事。
- 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
出神；操心
心思被某事佔滿而忽略周遭
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.
她滿腦子都是生病的父親，因此忘了三點的會議。
preoccupation with + noun
Carlos walked past me on the street, lost in some private preoccupation.
Carlos 在街上走過我身邊，整個人陷入某種私人的心事裡。
lost in + preoccupation
The country's preoccupation with house prices has shaped every recent election.
這個國家對房價的執著心思，左右了近年來每一次選舉。
Dr. Tanaka noticed a deep preoccupation in the boy's quiet eyes.
Dr. Tanaka 從那男孩沉靜的眼神裡，看出他心裡藏著很深的心事。
Sarah's preoccupation with the lost dog kept her staring out the kitchen window all afternoon.
Sarah 一心掛念著走失的狗，整個下午都盯著廚房窗外發呆。
- 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.