obsession

/əbˈsɛʃɪn/

/əbˈsɛʃən/

Other forms: obsessions

If you have an obsession, you're totally fixated on something and unhealthily devoted to it. Some common obsessions include fantasy football leagues, celebrity gossip, and Elvis memorabilia.

Obsession is kind of like a passion for something that crosses the line into crazy territory. Sometimes people get so preoccupied with their obsessions that it makes them anxious or emotionally unstable. If you have an obsession with the Yankees, for example, you might go to every single game, skip work to watch spring training, paper your room with Yankees posters, and write love notes to Derek Jeter.

Definitions of obsession

1. noun

   an unhealthy and compulsive preoccupation with something or someone
   synonyms: fixation, idee fixe

   type of:

   preoccupation

   an idea that preoccupies the mind and holds the attention
2. noun

   an irrational motive for performing trivial or repetitive actions, even against your will
   synonyms: compulsion

   types:

   onomatomania

   obsession with a particular word which the person uses repeatedly or which intrudes into consciousness

   type of:

   irrational motive

   a motivation that is inconsistent with reason or logic