occupy
oc·cu·py/ˈɑkjəpaɪ/verb
occupy is spelled O-C-C-U-P-Y: 6 letters and 3 syllables (oc·cu·py). It appears 8.5 times per million words in written English, the 7,910th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, occupy means “To fill” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in occupy?
| Letters | 6: O-C-C-U-P-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3: oc·cu·py |
| In writing | 8.5 times per million words; the 7,910th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is occupy?
Occupy appears 8.5 times per million words in written English, the 7,910th 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 occupy?
- UK /ˈɒkjʊpaɪ/
- US /ˈɑkjəpaɪ/
Occupy has 3 syllables, split oc·cu·py in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-occupy.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of occupy
- occupies present, singular, he/she/it
- occupying participle, present
- occupied participle, past, singular, he/she/it, plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does occupy mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To fill.
The film occupied three hours of my time.
- 2
To possess or use the time or capacity of; to engage the service of.
The film occupied me for three hours.
- 3
To fill or hold (an official position or role).
I occupy the post of deputy cat catcher.
- 4
To hold the attention of.
I occupied her friend while he made his proposal.
- 5
To fill space.
The historic mansion occupied two city blocks.
- 6
To live or reside in.
- 7
To have, or to have taken, possession or control of (a territory).
- 8
To place the theodolite or total station at (a point).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Occupy in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | occuper , habiter |
| Portuguese | ocupar |
| German | bewohnen , in Anspruch nehmen, belegen , besetzen, okkupieren |
| Spanish | ocupar |
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 occupy come from?
From Middle English occupien, occupyen, borrowed from Old French occuper, from Latin occupāre (“to take possession of, seize, occupy, take up, employ”), from ob (“to, on”) + capiō (“to take”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *kap- (“to seize, grab”). Doublet of occupate, now obsolete.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).