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obsessive

obsessive

1 6.5
A person who thinks about one thing too much in a way that harms them
  • noun
  • /əbˈsɛsɪv/
translation icon : obsesivo
  • An obsessive often spends hours fixating on a single hobby, neglecting other responsibilities.

Today's guest is stand up comedian, hip hop obsessive and fun fact, his best friend is his mom.

Examples

  • Would an obsessive even pose the possibility of his own delusion?

    Fiction book (2000)
  • The people at Nerlink are obsessive animal lovers.

  • I think most people in this room and most people you talk to are trying to build an obsessive audience.

  • And then I guess my obsessive nature took over and one school became many schools.

  • It's just us obsessives in here at this hour.

  • They are often obsessive and exacting about details and work, and even about their work ethic.

  • Chinese researchers recently compared the brain scans of average Internet users to the brain scans of Internet obsessives.

    Blog text (29)
  • Aisha is a bourbon and Hard Rock fan, a snowboarder and a sci-fi obsessive and we cover so much ground in this episode.

  • As Madonna fans and obsessives know, today marks the 30th anniversary of the Material Girl's first appearance on a Billboard chart.

    Blog text (17)
  • For obsessives of hardcore street photography and photojournalists alike, there's one man to thank for taking photography outside of the studio: Henri Cartier-Bresson, who would have turned 104 today.

    Blog text (30)

Synonyms

maniac
vsobsessive
  • Offensive
78 6.8

A person who likes something so much it seems extreme

is used for strong concern without implying extreme unreasonableness
addict
vsobsessive
  • Informal
37 4.7

A person who likes an activity very much and spends a lot of time doing it

is about excessive concern without implying physical or medical dependence
fiend
vsobsessive
  • Informal
35 7.5

A person who loves something and spends a lot of time on it

is similar but can be less irrational or extreme in tone
fetishist
vsobsessive
1 9.3

A person who has a very strong interest in one object or activity, not sexual

is more general covering any excessive concern not necessarily unusual
monomaniac
vsobsessive
  • Archaic
1 9.9

A person who thinks about one idea so much they ignore other things

is broader covering strong concern for any specific thing not only one idea
obsessor
vsobsessive
8.1

A person who thinks about one thing too much

is the same in meaning but differs only as a variant word form
junky
vsobsessive
  • Slang
7.9

A person who is very interested in one thing, like games or news

is a neutral term for excessive concern without informal tone
workaholic-zilla
vsobsessive
  • Slang
9.9

A person who works too much and misses family and friends

applies to strong concern in general rather than only to work

Compounds

obsessive-compulsive
  • Specialized
8 7.5

A person who has repeated unwanted thoughts and feels they must repeat actions that cause problems in daily life

8 3.5

A long-term mental health problem where unwanted thoughts make you repeat actions

obsessive-compulsive
  • Specialized
3 8.3

Showing repeated unwanted thoughts and strong urges to repeat actions that make daily life difficult

A person who needs things very neat and repeats actions until they feel right

How Obsessive

maniac
1 7.1
fanatic
8 4.3
obsessive
1 6.5
enthusiast
81 3.4
fan
1.0

Surface Forms

obsessive singular
obsessives plural

Etymology

The noun obsessive has the same roots, ob- 'against' and sedere 'to sit', so it paints the picture of a person whose mind is surrounded by one idea; an obsessive is someone who thinks about one thing all the time.