OCCUPIED Synonyms: 95 Similar and Opposite Words

occupied 1 of 2

adjective

as in engaged

involved in often constant activity the boy is constantly occupied, usually with sports or schoolwork

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

occupied

2 of 2

verb

past tense of occupy

as in interested

to hold the attention of a puzzle will occupy that child for hours

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of occupied

Adjective

Israeli settlers opened fire on olive harvesters in the occupied West Bank. — Arkansas Online, 8 Oct. 2026 Israel had threatened to shut the facility down completely in a dispute over British sanctions barring the import of goods from Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. — Dov Lieber, CBS News, 8 Oct. 2026 The dispute began last month when the United Kingdom banned trade with Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. — Cara Anna, Los Angeles Times, 8 Oct. 2026 At least one Palestinian was killed and 14 injured when Jewish settlers attacked olive farmers near the town of Nablus in the occupied West Bank, the official Palestinian news agency WAFA reported today. — Charlene Gubash, NBC news, 7 Oct. 2026 For occupied units, think about sticking to in-unit repairs that can be completed in a day or two. — Alex Vasquez, Forbes.com, 2 Oct. 2026 Israeli settlers have intensified efforts to seize natural springs and heritage sites in the occupied West Bank. — ABC News, 25 Sep. 2026 Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas called on the international community to ensure the viability of the two-state solution in the face of the ongoing Israeli expansion of settlements in the occupied West Bank and the war in Gaza. — Oren Liebermann, CNN Money, 24 Sep. 2026 Russia’s Central Election Commission (CEC) approved new electoral regulations that will be implemented in occupied Ukraine. — Chris Massaro , Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 18 Sep. 2026

Verb

Since those moments Birmingham has occupied a central space in the physical and spiritual lineage of America's Civil Rights Movement. — Leslie Pariseau, Condé Nast Traveler, 12 Oct. 2026 In the corner of the mall occupied by the Cinemark Rave movie theater, the smell of butter wafted into a lobby with another dry fountain. — Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 11 Oct. 2026 The event began more than a century ago following a tempestuous season of shenanigans (like turning over outhouses and letting cows loose down Main Street); the city’s leaders decided to keep residents occupied every October from then on. — Michelle Mastro, Midwest Living, 9 Oct. 2026 Subsequently, it was occupied by meat processing companies, food manufacturers, and research institutes, and later a pharmaceutical company. — New Atlas, 9 Oct. 2026 The building that the distillery occupied also featured a bar, restaurant, and tasting room, and hosted various whiskey experiences and parties over the years. — Jonah Flicker, Robb Report, 8 Oct. 2026 Right Now told The Times that the house is in good shape, is actively occupied — by people, not wild animals — and is slowly but steadily being renovated with long-term preservation in mind. — Jack Flemming, Los Angeles Times, 8 Oct. 2026 The blank area, or the area not occupied by the author’s work, has almost the same importance in a book as that occupied by the ink used to print the text. — Literary Hub, 8 Oct. 2026 Instead, Webb and the Broncos struggled as an offensive whole out of the gate — albeit against four of the best defenses in football — and now Payton is back in the seat he’s occupied for nearly his entire head-coaching tenure. — Parker Gabriel, Denver Post, 8 Oct. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for occupied

Adjective

The survey describes a wealthy, highly engaged slice of the generation, not Gen Z consumers generally.

— Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 8 Oct. 2026
Greene-Placentia later became more engaged in Arizona Democratic politics.

— Jacques Billeaud, Los Angeles Times, 8 Oct. 2026

Definition of engaged

Adjective

Erik Neander’s Oura Ring, a device that monitors heart rate and stress among other functions, had been busy in the days leading up to and during the American League Division Series against the Yankees.

— Marc Topkin, The Orlando Sentinel, 9 Oct. 2026
Even on busy weekends, the staff are perfectly primed to welcome guests with Southern charm and efficiency.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 8 Oct. 2026

Definition of busy

Verb

The mix of modern and vintage aims to make customers feel fully immersed in the world of Coach.

— Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 9 Oct. 2026
In direct liquid cooling, a specialized coolant is piped directly to components such as processors, whereas in immersion cooling, servers or other components are immersed in a nonconductive coolant.

— Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of immersed

Adjective

There are no straightforward steps like in the days when a diligent worker could land a job at a good company, work hard to get promoted and hope to climb the corporate ladder.

— Julia Carpenter, Washington Post, 2 Oct. 2026
Edwards said Brown was diligent in going to work and didn’t worry about the weather at all.

— Rebecca White, New York Daily News, 27 Sep. 2026

Definition of diligent

Verb

She was taken with Arnold right away, and intrigued by Bartlett’s visual style and imagination.

— Darryn King, Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2026
The latter ran the college’s Computer Science department; the former is intrigued by the teacher’s lectures on neural networks.

— David Fear, Rolling Stone, 6 Oct. 2026

Definition of intrigued

Verb

Last month, the Supreme Court ruled 8-1 that the 4th Circuit had prematurely halted the rule, finding that the FCC must issue a decision on the Democratic candidates’ petition for review before the appeals court can get involved.

— Jack Birle, The Washington Examiner, 9 Oct. 2026
The Las Vegas process has been active with at least three groups still involved and a franchise fee that could reach $10 billion, plus the cost to build a new venue.

— Kurt Badenhausen, Sportico.com, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of involved

Verb

In 2008, passionate surfer Tim Russo purchased the property, renamed it, and set out to organically grow it into a resort full of wonder where serious surfers and travelers fascinated with the surf lifestyle could vacation happily.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 9 Oct. 2026
Ancient Greeks were fascinated by phallic symbols and that showed in their comedy.

— Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of fascinated

Browse Nearby Words

occupations

occupied

occupier

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Occupied.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/occupied. Accessed 14 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of occupied

adjective

verb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

deportment

Popular in Grammar & Usage

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Popular in Wordplay

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

The Words of the Week - Oct. 9

Popular

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

Games & Quizzes