# possess

Pronunciation: say "puh-ZES" /pəˈzɛs/

## Verb

1. To have or own something, or to hold it as though you were its rightful owner.
   - Simple: To own something or have it as yours.
   - _Few families in the village possess more than a single acre of land._
   - _The museum possesses one of the finest collections of medieval armor in the country._
2. Of an evil spirit or similar being: to take control of someone's body or mind.
   - Simple: When an evil spirit takes control of a person's body or mind.
   - _According to the legend, restless spirits possess travelers who sleep in the ruined chapel._
   - _The priest claimed a demon had possessed the boy for months._
3. Of an idea or thought: to dominate or strongly influence someone's mind.
   - Simple: When an idea or feeling fills your mind and controls how you think.
   - _A desire for revenge can possess a person completely, crowding out every other thought._
   - _The thought of failure possessed him throughout the night._
4. Of a person, to control or dominate oneself or another, or one's own or another's heart or mind. *(literary)*
   - Simple: To keep control of yourself or your own feelings.
   - _He fought to possess his grief and speak calmly to the children._
   - _A good leader possesses her fear and acts with a steady hand._
5. To have physical control or holding of property without owning it, such as a chattel or an interest in land.
   - Simple: To hold or control something without actually owning it.
   - _A bailee may possess goods entrusted to him without holding any title to them._
   - _The company possesses the warehouse under a long lease but does not own the building._
6. Of a person, to dominate someone sexually; to have sexual intercourse with them. *(literary)*
   - Simple: To have sex with someone, especially in a way that shows power over them.
   - _The poem describes how the conqueror sought to possess every woman he captured._
   - _He wrote that desire alone made him want to possess her body and soul._
7. To dwell in a place or occupy it.
   - Simple: To live or stay in a place.

## Verb

8. To get hold of something, whether by seizing it or by winning or gaining it. *(archaic)*
   - Simple: To get or take something for yourself.
   - _The conquerors sought to possess the gold-rich provinces of the south._
   - _Through cunning and force, he finally possessed the throne he had long coveted._
9. Chiefly with of or with, to vest ownership of something in oneself or another; to bestow or endow. *(archaic)*
   - Simple: To give someone ownership of something, or to provide them with it.
   - _The deed served to possess the church of all the surrounding lands._
   - _He labored to possess himself of every document the lawyer held._
10. To cause an idea or feeling to strongly affect or influence someone; to inspire or preoccupy them. *(archaic)*
   - Simple: To fill someone's mind with a strong idea or feeling.
   - _The general's words seemed to possess his soldiers with reckless courage._
   - _Her letters possessed him with a longing he could not explain._
11. To occupy or take up someone's attention or time. *(archaic)*
   - Simple: To take up someone's time or attention.
   - _Affairs of state so possessed the king that he forgot his own birthday._
   - _Trivial worries should not possess a busy mind for long._
12. To have knowledge of, or the ability to use, a language, skill, or similar. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: To know a language or skill well enough to use it.
13. Chiefly with that, to convince or persuade someone of something. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: To make someone believe or agree to something.
   - _The counselor labored to possess the jury that his client spoke the truth._
   - _Nothing could possess her that the danger had truly passed._
14. To make someone aware of something by supplying them with information or knowledge. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: To give someone information so they know what is happening.
   - _The lawyer rose to possess the court of the new evidence._
   - _She wrote at length to possess her friend of every detail._
15. To inhabit, dwell in, or hold occupancy of a place. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: To live in or take up a place.

## Origin

This comes through Middle English possessen and Old French possesser from the Latin possessus, the past participle of possideō ("to have, hold, own; to take possession of; to occupy"). The Latin verb was built from potis ("able, capable"), from Proto-Indo-European *pótis ("master, ruler, husband"), plus sedeō ("to sit"), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *sed- ("to sit").

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/possess (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).