obsess
/əbˈsɛs/verb
obsess is spelled O-B-S-E-S-S: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 32,798th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, obsess means “To be preoccupied with a single topic or emotion” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in obsess?
| Letters | 6: O-B-S-E-S-S |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 32,798th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is obsess?
Obsess appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 32,798th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce obsess?
- /əbˈsɛs/
Obsess has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-obsess.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of obsess
- obsesses present, singular, he/she/it
- obsessing participle, present
- obsessed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does obsess mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To be preoccupied with a single topic or emotion.
Some people are obsessed with sports.
- 2
To dominate the thoughts of someone.
Thoughts of her obsess my every waking moment.
- 3
colloquialTo think or talk obsessively about.
Stop obsessing over it, will you!
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Obsess in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | être obsédé , obséder |
| German | besessen sein |
| Spanish | obsesionarse , obsesionar |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does obsess come from?
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.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).