preoccupy

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

“If the Iran situation lingers, it will preoccupy more and more of Congress’ time,” said Stifel Chief Washington Strategist Brian Gardner.

From Barron's • Mar. 3, 2026

What will preoccupy us in a century, fuel our ambitions and stir our fears, will probably be something we can’t even imagine today.

From Slate • Dec. 9, 2025

Numbers don’t preoccupy me as much as they did my father, but I still find them fascinating.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 4, 2025

They could help or hinder: provide the moral force for urgent action or preoccupy us with crisis management.

From Salon • Sep. 29, 2024

I suppose I must have assumed those old problems had been left behind with our early teen years, and that only the big issues that now loomed so large could possibly preoccupy any of us.

From "Never Let Me Go" by Kazuo Ishiguro