Where does “obsessive” come from?
Obsessive comes from Latin obsessus, the past participle of obsidere meaning "to besiege," from the prefix ob- "against" and sedere "to sit," ultimately from Proto-Indo-European sed- "to sit."
obsessive (English): Prone to cause obsession; Having one thought or...
Definitions
- Prone to cause obsession; Having one thought or...
Ancestry of “obsessive”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | obsess | To be preoccupied with a single topic or emotion;... |
| 2 | Latin | obsessus | inhabited; besieged; obsessed |
| 3 | Latin | obsideō | to sit, remain, abide, stay |
| 4 | Latin | ob- | towards; against |
| 5 | Latin | obolus | obolus (Greek coin) |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | ὀβολός | obol, obolus, used at Athens as both a weight and... |
| 7 | Ancient Greek | ὀβελός | a spit, rod; a horizontal line |
| 8 | Ancient Greek | βέλος | missile, arrow, dart; weapon; something quickly... |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | gʷélHos | — |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | gʷelH- | to throw, reach, pierce; to hit by throwing |