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occupy

verb
oc·​cu·​py | \ ˈä-kyə-ˌpī How to pronounce occupy (audio) \
occupied; occupying

Definition of occupy

transitive verb

1 : to engage the attention or energies of They occupied themselves with video games.
2a : to take up (a place or extent in space) this chair is occupied the fireplace will occupy this corner of the room
b : to take or fill (an extent in time) the hobby occupies all of my free time
3a : to take or hold possession or control of enemy troops occupied the ridge
b : to fill or perform the functions of (an office or position) will occupy the newly created office of chancellor — Current Biography
4 : to reside in as an owner or tenant occupies an apartment on a two-year lease
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Other Words from occupy

occupier \ ˈä-​kyə-​ˌpī(-​ə)r How to pronounce occupier (audio) \ noun

Examples of occupy in a Sentence

They have occupied the apartment for three years. She occupies the house that her grandfather built 50 years ago. They own another house that they occupy only three months out of the year. They occupy the room next to ours. This region was once almost completely occupied by forests. Their house occupies a beautiful spot next to the ocean. Much of our time is occupied by answering questions from our customers. These questions have continued to occupy her mind.
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Recent Examples on the Web

 Many of them ended up in the Burgue as refugees to escape being murdered by The Pact's occupying forces. — Jennifer Ouellette, Wired, "Carnival Row brings a Richly Textured Fantasy World to Life," 4 Sep. 2019 Many of them ended up in the Burgue as refugees to escape being murdered by The Pact's occupying forces. — Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, "Review: Carnival Row brings a richly textured fantasy world to vibrant life," 3 Sep. 2019 Japan accuses South Korea of occupying the islets illegally and has stepped up its campaign to highlight its territorial claim in recent decades. — Choe Sang-hun, BostonGlobe.com, "South Korea launches military exercise for islets also claimed by Japan," 25 Aug. 2019 Antonio Brown, Tyrell Williams and Hunter Renfrow are carved in stone, with Dwayne Harris occupying a spot on special teams. — Jerry Mcdonald, The Mercury News, "Raiders mailbag: Can Derek Carr and Antonio Brown make up for lost time?," 24 Aug. 2019 Please respect fellow fans by only occupying one parking stall. — Ed Masley, azcentral, "What you need to know about the Rolling Stones concert at State Farm Stadium," 20 Aug. 2019 According to court records, a Walker County grand jury indicted Williams in 2010 on charges of murder and shooting a firearm into an occupied building. — Carol Robinson | [email protected], al, "Escaped Alabama prisoner captured in Louisiana after month on the run," 15 Aug. 2019 For Mulhollem, though, the major problem with people occupying boats in the water is what happens once the boats no longer function. — oregonlive.com, "Abandoned boats along Portland waterways receive long-awaited attention," 12 Aug. 2019 Some of the protesters who had been occupying the airport's arrivals hall swarmed into the departures area Monday, prompting authorities to cancel all flights and advise travelers to leave one of the world's busiest hubs. — Anchorage Daily News, "Protesters shut down Hong Kong airport; China warns of ‘terrorism,’ raising fears of military crackdown," 12 Aug. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'occupy.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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First Known Use of occupy

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

History and Etymology for occupy

Middle English occupien "to take possession of, hold, inhabit, take up space in, fill, keep (oneself) busy," borrowed from Anglo-French occuper, occupier, borrowed from Latin occupāre "to grasp, appropriate to oneself, take possession of, fill up (space, a position), forestall," from oc-, assimilated variant of ob- ob- + -cupāre, intensive derivative of capere "to take, seize, catch" — more at heave entry 1

Note: The source of the -i- in Anglo-French occupier and Middle English occupien, retained in Modern English, is unclear, as continental French has only occuper. The verb occupy, common in later Middle and early Modern English, was very infrequently used in the 17th and first two thirds of the 18th century; it has been suggested that this was due to the sense "to have sexual intercourse with (a woman)," which impinged by connotation on the less charged meanings and led to a taboo on any use of the word. When the socially unacceptable sense fell out of circulation occupy once more became a generally used word.

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More Definitions for occupy

occupy

verb
How to pronounce occupy (audio)

English Language Learners Definition of occupy

somewhat formal : to live in (a house, apartment, etc.)
: to fill or be in (a place or space)
: to fill or use (an amount of time)

See the full definition for occupy in the English Language Learners Dictionary

occupy

verb
oc·​cu·​py | \ ˈä-kyə-ˌpī How to pronounce occupy (audio) \
occupied; occupying

Kids Definition of occupy

1 : to fill up (an extent of time or space) Sports occupy our spare time. A liter of water occupies 1000 cubic centimeters of space.
2 : to take up the attention or energies of Reading occupied me most of the summer.
3 : to live in as an owner or tenant Her sisters occupied the house for three years.
4 : to take or hold possession of Enemy troops occupied the town.
5 : to perform the functions of She occupies a position of authority.

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