possessionn.
/pəˈzɛʃn/, U.S. /pəˈzɛʃ(ə)n/ 1. † d. Mining. English regional (Derbyshire). The right to a meer of ground, as marked out by stowces. Also: the stowces themselves. Obsolete.
a. The action or fact of holding something (material or immaterial) as one's own or in one's control; the state or condition of being so held. to be in (a person's) possession: to be possessed or owned by (a person). to be in possession of: to possess, hold, or occupy (something). †to take in possession: to take for one's own or into one's control; to seize.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > taking > taking possession > take possession of [verb (transitive)]
take?a1160
seizec1290
raima1325
to take in possessiona1325
to hent in (also upon) handa1350
occupya1382
to take possession?a1425
to take upc1425
uptakec1425
to take in1523
possess1526
master1826
the mind > possession > be in possession [verb (intransitive)]
possess1415
to be in possession of1603
a1325 Statutes of Realm in MS Rawl. B.520 f. 56 No Ȝift nas imad of þe Eir ne aloigning ore chaunge of possession.
a1325 Statutes of Realm in MS Rawl. B.520 f. 61v (MED) Þulke excepcion is vaillaunt ase to þe writ of possession.
1340 Ayenbite (1866) 261 (MED) Þe ilke blissinge ssel by uolmad huanne hi ssolle by ine payzible possession of þe eritage of hire uader.
a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) 1 Esdras iv. 16 If þat cite were bild vp & his wallis enstored, þou shalt not han possessioun beȝonde þe flood.
a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) ii. 3480 (MED) This Emperour..Withinne Rome anon let founde Tuo cherches..And yaf therto possessioun Of lordschipe and of worldes good.
?a1400 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Petyt) ii. 239 Þe londes þat þei haue now in possessioun.
a1425 (?a1400) G. Chaucer Romaunt Rose (Hunterian) 3281 In love..The peyne is hard, out of mesure..And in the possessioun Is myche tribulacioun.
a1450 St. Edith (Faust.) (1883) 413 (MED) To chirches and abbays þat weren pore, þe ton half þus ȝaffe he, þey to haue hit for euermore In possessyon and in fee.
a1500 in F. J. Furnivall Polit., Relig., & Love Poems (1903) 66 (MED) That it be youres, trewely, it is my liste; my possesioon and my parte þer-of y denye.
1526 W. Bonde Pylgrimage of Perfection iii. sig. FFFi But also haue sure felyng, tastyng, possession, and fruicion of his goodnesse.
1560 J. Daus tr. J. Sleidane Commentaries f. xiij He hathe Millan nowe in possession.
a1571 W. Haddon in A. Fleming Panoplie Epist. (1576) 417 The Queenes maiestie, nowe in possession of the English empire.
1603 G. Owen Descr. Penbrokshire (1892) 85 Any lande..beinge in the pocession of the Churche.
1690 J. Locke Two Treat. Govt. ii. v. §38 The same measures governed the Possession of Land too.
1709 R. Steele Tatler No. 2. ⁋1 Beauty is a Thing which palls with Possession.
1756 Gentleman's Mag. 26 391 In Limerick, a county, of which the greater part was..in the possession of families whose ancestors were adventurers in the reign of Q. Elizabeth.
1771 ‘Junius’ Stat Nominis Umbra (1772) II. lxvii. 307 He loses the very property, of which he thought he had gotten possession.
1814 M. Edgeworth Patronage II. xviii. 139 I am not one of those exigeante mothers, who expect always to have possession of a son's arm.
1871 B. Jowett in tr. Plato Dialogues I. 177 Philosophy is the possession of knowledge.
1886 B. L. Farjeon Three Times Tried i. 13/2 I..left Captain Bellwood in possession of the field.
1888 F. Pollock & R. S. Wright Possession in Comm. Law 119 When a man is away from home his household effects do not cease to be in his possession.
1920 D. H. Lawrence Women in Love iv. 47 His possession of a world to himself.
1983 B. A. K. Rider Insider Trading v. 276 The wording of the proposed criminal offence expressly required the person concerned to have possession of, and know, the relevant inside information.
1991 J. Trollope Rector's Wife ix.114 Jonathan threaded his way along, thinking how aggressive and proprietorial of pavement space the possession of a pushchair made most women.
b. Law. Visible power or control over something (defined by the intention to use or to hold it against others) as distinct from lawful ownership; spec. exclusive control of land (in early use sometimes in the technical sense of seisin n.).The primary component of possession is physical control, corpus. In Roman Law it came to be recognized that there also needed to be an intention to possess, animus. English law has come to adopt the same approach, though stressing that the requisite psychological element will vary with circumstances and that no universally applicable rule can be formulated. A person may therefore be said to be in possession for certain purposes yet not for others.chose in possession: see chose n. 1.
ΘΚΠ
society > law > legal possession > [noun]
state1400
owingc1450
possession1535
detention1626
1394 in Collectanea Topographica & Genealogica (1836) III. 256 (MED) By that refeffement were we alle forsaid confeffes of all oure astat, riht, and posession in the forsaid londis.
c1440 (?a1400) Morte Arthure 2608 (MED) Of Alexandere and Aufrike and alle þa owte-landes, I am in possessione, and plenerly sessede.
1473 Rolls of Parl. VI. 91 To the Patronage or Possession of the Chirch of Prescote.
1535 Act 27 Hen. VIII c. 10 Every such person..shall hensforth stond and be seasid demed and adjuged in lawfull season estate and possession of and in the same.
1559 in J. Stuart Rec. Monastery Kinloss (1872) 151 We chairg..you..to pas to the..landis..And ther gif him stait and possessioun be thak and raip as wse is.
1579 Rastell's Expos. Termes Lawes (new ed.) 158 Possession is said two wayes, eyther actuall possession, or possession in law. Actuall possession is when a man entreth in deede into landes or tenements to him discended or otherwise. Possession in lawe, is when landes or tenements are discended to a man, and he hath not as yet really, actually, and in deede entred into them.
a1625 H. Finch Law (1627) iv. xxxi. 370 In writs of right or of possession..that is a good counterplea.
1641 Termes de la Ley Deforceor is hee that overcommeth and casteth out with force, and he differeth from a disseisor, first in this, that a man may disseise another without force..then because a man may deforce another that never was in possession.
1706 Phillips's New World of Words (new ed.) Unity of Possession, is when the Possession, or Profit is united with the Property. Thus, if the Lord purchase the Tenancy held by Heriot-Service, then the Heriot is extinct by Unity of Possession, i.e. because the Seignory or Lordship and the Tenancy are now in one Man's Possession.
1751 S. Johnson Cheynel in Student 2 No. 9. 332 Who, with his usual coolness and modesty, took possession of the lodgings soon after by breaking open the doors.
1766 W. Blackstone Comm. Laws Eng. II. xxv. 389 First then of property in possession absolute; which is where a man hath, solely and exclusively, the right, and also the occupation, of any moveable chattels.
1804 W. Cruise Digest Laws Eng. Real Prop. III. 368 The first degree of title is the bare possession, or actual occupation of the estate, without any apparent right, or any pretence of right, to hold and continue such possession.
1827 J. Kent Comm. Amer. Law II. xxxix. 388 Though the vendee acquires a right of property by the contract of sale, he does not acquire a right of possession of the goods until he pays or tenders the price.
1837 Baron Parke in R. Meeson & W. N. Welsby Rep. Cases Exchequer II. 331 Ownership may be proved by proof of possession, and that can be shown only by acts of enjoyment of the land itself.
1885 W. A. Hunter Introd. Rom. Law 209 Possession is the occupation of anything with the intention of exercising the rights of ownership in respect of it.
1888 F. Pollock & R. S. Wright Possession in Comm. Law 58 A servant in charge of his master's property, or a person having the use of anything by the mere licence of the owner..generally has not possession.
1898 J. M. Lightwood in Encycl. Laws Eng. X. 236 In the case of goods..the mere right to possession is sometimes described as ‘constructive possession’, and is allowed the advantages of actual possession.
a1976 A. Christie Autobiogr. (1977) v. iv. 272 I've come about the plot..£90 per annum?.. And when is possession?
1996 P. Wilde Which? Guide to Renting & Letting (rev. ed.) i. 11 A tenancy is an arrangement under which exclusive possession of property is granted for a fixed or ascertainable period of time.
c. possession is nine (formerly hyperbolically also †eleven) points of the lawand variants (now frequently possession is nine-tenths of the law): possession overwhelmingly outweighs all other factors in the eyes of the law. Cf. point n.1 6e.
ΘΚΠ
society > law > legal possession > held in possession [phrase] > possession is nine or eleven points of the law
nine (formerly also eleven) points of the law1616
possession is nine (formerly hyperbolically also eleven) points of the law1712
1616 T. Draxe Adages 163 Possession is nine points in the Law.
1650 N. Ward Discolliminium 13 Possession may be 11 points of the Law.
1659 J. Ireton Oration 5 This Rascally-devill..denys to pay a farthing of rent. Tis true, possession is nine point of the Law, Yet give Gentlemen, right's right.
1712 J. Arbuthnot Lewis Baboon iv. iii. 16 Possession..would make it much surer; they say, it is eleven points of the Law.
1809 B. H. Malkin tr. A. R. Le Sage Adventures Gil Blas IV. x. x. 145 She had possession, and that is nine points of the law.
1842 J. F. Cooper Two Admirals II. xv. 233 He well knew that possession was nine points of the law.
1873 Atlantic Monthly Nov. 570 ‘My good sir,’ said a pert young law-student, ‘possession is nine tenths of the law.’
1901 Atlantic Monthly Oct. 465/2 This decision..gave an extraordinary force to the adage that ‘possession is nine points of the law’.
1966 D. Varaday Gara-Yaka's Domain ix. 81 Even in reptile society possession is nine-tenths of the law. The smaller crocodile was..obviously not prepared to give up its property without a fight.
1980 W. Abish How German is It? iii. xxxv. 203 They don't belong to us, said Ulrich. Possession is nine tenths of the law, Helmuth reminded him.
1998 Amer. Jrnl. Internat. Law 92 784 In international law, not only is possession not nine-tenths of the law but it is really only interpretative proof of title.
ΘΚΠ
society > law > legal right > right of possession or ownership > [noun] > rights of occupying ground or land > of miner
possession1653
1653 E. Manlove Liberties & Customes Lead-mines Derby 1 A cross and hole a good possession is But for three dayes.
1681 T. Houghton Compl. Miner (E.D.S.) Gloss. Possession, the right to a meer of ground, which miners enjoy, by having stows upon that ground; and it is taken generally for the stows themselves; for it is the stows that give possession.
1753 Chambers's Cycl. Suppl. Next taker, among miners, is he that hath the next meer in possession.
1802 J. Mawe Mineral. of Derbyshire Gloss. Stowces, pieces of wood of particular forms and constructions placed together, by which the possession of mines is marked.
1851 T. Tapping Gloss. to Manlove Possession, the term is also gen. used to signify the stows themselves, because thereby the miners obtain possession.
e. Sport (originally U.S.). Temporary control of the ball, puck, etc., by a particular player or team; a period of such control. Also more generally: the extent of a team's control of the ball, etc., or resulting dominance in a match.
ΚΠ
1887 Outing 11 89/2 It is the main object of the rusher, when he is on the move, to obtain possession of the ball and to keep it in the hands of his side as much of the time as possible.
1906 D. Gallaher & W. J. Stead Compl. Rugby Footballer iv. 55 When the time comes that the man in possession of the ball finds himself in or approaching difficulty, he should transfer possession.
1935 Encycl. Sports, Games & Pastimes 358/1 The player in possession of the puck slides it along the ice with his stick, and..endeavours to hit it between his opponents' goal posts.
1951 Sport 30 Mar. 6/3 A great kick-through by Cunliffe gave the home side possession a few yards from the line.
1976 Washington Post 19 Apr. d4/4 The Bucks ran the 24-second shot clock down to two seconds in their next possession as Jim Price fired up a wild 25-foot shot and missed.
1994 People (Electronic ed.) 24 Apr. Linfield dominated possession and could have scored several more times.
2001 Evening News (Edinb.) (Nexis) 7 Apr. 3 On 57 minutes, a dreadful pass by Corrigan gave possession to Sylla who sent Lowndes scurrying towards goal.
f. colloquial (originally U.S.). The offence of possessing drugs or other illegal substances.
ΘΚΠ
society > law > rule of law > lawlessness > specific offences > [noun] > illegal possession of drugs
possession1921
1921 Atlanta Constit. 27 Sept. 14/2 Agents yesterday arrested Frank Conroy..and his bartender, Michael Hayes, on a charge of possession.
1929 Athens (Ohio) Messenger 5 Mar. 12 Charges of possession and transportation were filed against Bond, who was arrested Saturday evening by Officers Farbeann and Briley when they stopped his machine in Haydenville and discovered that it contained two gallons of whisky.
1970 N.Y. Times Mag. 15 Feb. 19/1 John E. Ingersoll..suggested that the penalty for simple possession for personal use be reduced to that of a misdemeanor.
1986 ‘L. Cody’ Under Contract xxvii. 101 No one had gone so far as to be arrested for possession.
1993 Independent on Sunday 11 July 5/1 Police from the regional crime squad charged him with possession, production of controlled drugs, and conspiracy.
2. † b. Scottish. A tenancy; a small farm, etc., held under lease, a smallholding. Obsolete.
a. That which is possessed or held as property; something belonging to one, a piece of property; (in plural) belongings, property, wealth.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > [noun]
holda1100
havea1200
possession?a1380
ight1390
havingc1400
haviourc1400
possessingc1450
fee-simple1463
possessorship1830
the mind > possession > possessions > [noun] > a possession or piece of property
possession?a1380
subjectc1626
?a1380 in Hist. MSS Comm.: Rep. MSS Var. Coll. (1909) V. 77 in Parl. Papers (Cd. 4600) XXV. 1 He aucht nocht to ga owte of his possession forowte the Kyngis brefe.
a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) Job i. 3 His possessioun was seuene thousend of sheep & þre thousend of camailes, also fifty ȝockis of oxen & fyue hundred assis & ful myche meyne.
c1400 (a1376) W. Langland Piers Plowman (Trin. Cambr. R.3.14) (1960) A. xi. 200 (MED) Dewid he is also, And haþ possessions [v.rr. poscesciouns, posessiones] & pluralities for pore menis sake.
?a1475 (?a1425) tr. R. Higden Polychron. (Harl. 2261) (1872) IV. 155 (MED) The senate..occupiede the londes and possessiones [a1387 J. Trevisa tr. occupied feeldes; L. occupaverant agros] of mony other peple.
a1500 (?c1425) Speculum Sacerdotale (1936) 245 (MED) A certeyn grete man..depriuyd the chirche of Seynt Andrewe of a certeyn felde and possession.
a1538 T. Starkey Dial. Pole & Lupset (1989) 52 Such an idul sort, spendyng theyr possessyonys.
1586 J. Ferne Blazon of Gentrie 289 Goods and Possessions be things onely accompaniyng the honor of the body of the owner, and therefore they be called corporate.
1610 P. Holland tr. W. Camden Brit. i. 729 Masham, which was the possession of the Scropes of Masham.
1665 R. Boyle Occas. Refl. i. vii. sig. N2v In Estimating a Man's condition, we should not only consider what Possessions he has, but what Desires.
1722 R. Steele Conscious Lovers (1755) iii. i. 46 It will be nothing for them to give us a little Being of our own, some small Tenement, out of their large Possessions.
1799 H. Hunter tr. J.-H. B. de Saint-Pierre Stud. Nature (ed. 2) I. 354 Christianity..wrested in France enormous possessions out of the hands of the Earls and Barons.
1841 G. P. R. James Brigand ii Beauty is a woman's best possession till she be old.
1875 B. Jowett tr. Plato Dialogues (ed. 2) I. 434 One of your possessions, an ox or an ass, for example.
1961 Amer. Heritage Bk. Indians 340/1 Medicine Arrows, the Cheyennes' most sacred possession.
1991 R. Howard tr. E. M. Cioran Anathemas & Admirations xx. 247 Overwhelmed by possessions, fortunate according to the world, she nonetheless seemed utterly destitute.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > farming > farm > [noun] > small holding or croft
manslotOE
bargain1602
burgaine1607
smallholding1696
possession1717
farmlet1794
homecroft1828
croft1850
crofting1851
five-acre1863
three acres and a cow1885
farmette1913
minifundium1950
minifundioa1955
1717 M. Macneill Carskey Jrnl. (1955) 52 He rests me fifty mrks Scots for his proportion of the Entress of his sd possessione.
1735 in H. Hamilton Select. Monymusk Papers (1945) 32 The said James Moore obliges himself and forsaids, not to allow to have any grassmen or crofters, nor any other families besides his own upon the said possession.
1799 J. Robertson Gen. View Agric. Perth 511 The lanes include between them the breadth of two possessions only.
1805 R. Forsyth Beauties Scotl. I. 519 [The farms] run from L.30 to L.1200; if below L.30, they are called possessions.
1879 A. F. Murison Mem. (1935) 209 One of this farms of which was genneraly called possessions was taken by my grandfather it was called Wellhowe.
c. A territory subject to a sovereign ruler or state; (now chiefly) any of a country's foreign dominions.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > rule or government > territorial jurisdiction or areas subject to > [noun] > territory governed by a ruler or state
demesnea1387
principalitya1398
territory?a1439
dominationc1440
statea1500
dominion1512
dition1542
heretochy1587
domain1601
sovereignty1715
possession1797
daimiote1870
ealdormanry1870
1797 R. Tyler Algerine Captive I. xxvi. 172 Hereditary senators, ignorant and inattentive to the welfare of their country, and unacquainted with the geography of its foreign possessions.
1818 J. Adolphus (title) The Political State of the British Empire; containing a General View of the Domestic and Foreign Possessions of the Crown.
1850 H. Martineau Introd. Hist. Peace II. v. xii. 377 Canada became a British possession in 1763.
1888 Pall Mall Gaz. 13 Sept. 4/1 British New Guinea has very rapidly developed from the position of a protectorate into that of a possession.
1905 Whitaker's Almanack 512 The British Possessions in North America include the whole of the northern part of that continent excepting Alaska [etc.].
1940 Economist 7 Sept. 299/1 The leasing to the United States of air and naval bases in British possessions in America.
1991 J. E. Dreifort Myopic Grandeur i. 11 While French possessions in the South Pacific were not as extensive as the holdings of other colonial powers in the area, they were substantial.
3.
a. Domination of a person's heart, mind, or soul by a person or other agent.
ΚΠ
1584 W. Warner Pan his Syrinx iv. xxvi. sig. L3 Crisippus hearing these sweete speeches to proceede from her, that had the present Possession, and promised Reuersion of his hart,..did only manifest the integritie of his vnremoueable loue.
1584 B. Rich Don Simonides II. sig. Fiii Ouercome by his importunitie, at the last I yeelded to the assault, promising hym the full possession of my hart, if he would so moderate himself by a twelue monethes space.
1599 E. Ford Parismenos xxii. sig. M3v I yeelded my interest to him, that had taken possession in her gentle heart, before my comming.
a1639 H. Wotton View Life & Death Duke of Buckingham in Reliquiæ Wottonianæ (1651) 77 Who was then as yet in possession of the king's heart.
1667 J. Dryden Indian Emperour ii. iii. 23 Ah happy Beauty whosoe're thou art! Though dead thou keep'st possession of his Heart.
1740 J.Wesley & C. Wesley in Poet. Works. (1868) I. 308 O that the Comforter would come, Nor visit as a transient guest, But fix in me His constant home, And take possession of my breast.
1753 H. Jones Merit 8 Come, sacred Inmate, come, thou glorious Guest, Take large Possession of my lab'ring Breast.
1798 E. Moody Poetic Trifles 52 Goddess of Culinary Art, Now take possession of my heart!
1834 W. A. Caruthers Cavaliers of Virginia I. xii. 164 You have had possession of my whole soul from the days of our infancy. 'Tis yours, Virginia, wholly yours; soul, mind and heart, all yours.
1895 J. Todhunter Black Cat ii. 62 You have simply taken possession of me from the first—imagination, heart, soul, everything. I live in you.
2004 Boston Irish Reporter (Nexis) 31 Aug. 6 It was during these recitations that..Christ himself came down and took possession of me.
b. Domination of a person by an idea, thought, feeling, etc. Also occasionally: the thought or feeling itself, a preoccupation, an obsession.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > belief > belief, trust, confidence > act of convincing, conviction > [noun] > firm opinion, conviction > dominating > dominance by
possession1591
one-ideadness1852
the mind > mental capacity > belief > belief, trust, confidence > act of convincing, conviction > [noun] > firm opinion, conviction > dominating
possession1728
cheval de bataille1818
fixed idea1829
idée fixe1836
King Charles's head1865
fixation1963
1591 J. Harington tr. L. Ariosto Orlando Furioso v. 36 Dispaire had of his hart the full possession.
1595 R. Parry Moderatus v. sig. F How farre doe I forget my selfe, that seeke to roote out his memorie from my heart, that alreadie hath taken possession therein.
1621 T. W. tr. S. Goulart Wise Vieillard 76 I come now to speake of anger and choller, which commonly keepe possession in old men.
1635 T. May Victorious Reigne Edward III vi. sig. L7v Doubts or feares..No longer hold possession in his breast; Love freely enters to displace the rest.
1728 C. Cibber Vanbrugh's Provok'd Husband i. i. 5 I have a strong Possession, that with this five hundred, I shall win five thousand.
1826 New Monthly Mag. 16 508 Old ideas still keep possession of old heads.
1868 H. W. Longfellow Jrnl. 10 Feb. in S. Longfellow Final Memorials H. W. Longfellow (1887) vi. 104 I have worked steadily on it, for it took hold of me,—a kind of possession.
1962 S. Wynter Hills of Hebron i. 24 He turned to Miss Gatha and searched her face, trying to fathom the madness that had possession of her.
1999 Irish Times (Nexis) 11 May 12 A story well told can take possession of the imagination with an immediacy and energy which the inked page doesn't always manage.
4. Domination or control of a person by a demon or spirit; an instance of this. Also: (Psychology) a change in mental disposition, a substitution of personality.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > mental health > mental illness > degree or type of mental illness > [noun] > possession
possession1601
fanaticism1708
demonomania1800
demonopathy1846
theolepsy1886
mafufunyana1952
the world > the supernatural > supernatural being > evil spirit or demon > [noun] > familiar or possessing spirit > possession by
wood dreameOE
demoniacal possession1601
possession1601
obsession1607
pythonism1654
demoniac possession1698
endiablementa1734
endemoniasm1751
demon possession1838
demonic possession1853
spirit possession1854
bedevilment1861
diabolepsy1886
1601 J. Deacon & J. Walker Summarie Answere to Darel 19 Tremellius and Beza for the former respects doe expound it thus, a man, in whom was an vncleane spirit: they vnderstand not thereby, any essentiall possession, but, onlie an effectuall operation of Satan, in so manie especially, as are slauishlie subiected vnto him.
1651 T. Hobbes Leviathan i. viii. 38 Neither Moses, nor Abraham pretended to Prophecy by possession of a Spirit.
1689 C. Mather (title) Memorable providences, relating to witchcrafts and possessions.
1746 J. Wesley Princ. Methodist farther Explain'd 51 If you were to suppose John Haydon..was not mad, but under a temporary Possession.
1846 R. C. Trench Notes Miracles v. 154 The same disease they did sometimes attribute to an evil spirit, and sometimes not, thus showing that the disease and possession were not identical in their eyes.
1871 M. Collins Marquis & Merchant II. ii. 48 Theories..about lunacy and diabolic possession.
1903 F. W. H. Myers Human Personality I. Gloss. Possession, a developed form of motor automatism, in which the automatist's own personality disappears for the time, while there is a more or less complete substitution of personality, writing or speech being given by another spirit through the entranced organism.
1974 M. Tippett Moving into Aquarius 125 There is a third form of possession or madness, of which the Muses are the source.
1988 J. Herbert Haunted ix. 69 ‘A haunting?’ ‘More like a possession, from what I'm told.’
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > taking > seizing > [noun]
nomea1300
arrestc1386
seizingc1400
rugging1507
rapping1541
grasping1546
seizement1581
expropriation1626
possessionc1693
grabbing1788
grab1835
c1693 Player's Trag. 45 I am the unhappy Wretch (replied Montano) that dies for the Possession of Bracilla; which I have in vain pursued this Twelve-Month.
1748 B. Robins & R. Walter Voy. round World by Anson ii. ix. 231 Our future projects..with a view to the possession of this celebrated galeon.
1752 H. Fielding Amerla IV. x. ii. 20 For what Reward will you inflict all this Misery on another? I will add on your Friend? For the Possession of a Woman; for the Pleasure of a Moment?
1864 R. W. Dixon Hist. Odes & Other Poems 68 To try one battle more For the possession of his den Against but a thousand strong.
1890 ‘M. Field’ Tragic Mary iii. i. 108 They confess under torture to devising a plot for the possession of my person.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > calmness > self-possession or self-control > [noun]
repressiona1413
governailc1425
willc1480
self-rule1532
coldness1548
stay1556
presentness of mind1598
coolness1607
cold blooda1609
temper1611
self-discipline1612
retention?1615
presence of mind?1624
self-governance1630
retentiveness1641
self-command1651
self-mastery1652
self-control1653
self-direction1653
self-restraint1656
self-possession1665
possessednessa1698
self-regulation1698
possession1703
retenue1747
sang-froid1750
self-collection1761
render1768
self-collectedness1805
self-repression1821
self-containedness1835
unimpulsiveness1860
cool-headedness1881
sophrosyne1889
cool1964
1703 W. Burkitt Expos. Notes New Test. Luke xxi. 19 As Faith gives us the Possession of Christ, so Patience gives us the possession of our selves.
1710 R. Steele Tatler No. 168. ⁋4 To acquire such a Degree of Assurance, as never to lose the Possession of themselves in publick or private.
1801 M. Edgeworth Prussian Vase in Moral Tales III. 53 I have need of that calm possession of my understanding,..necessary to convince yours.
1871 R. Ellis tr. Catullus Poems xxxv. 12 She, if only report the truth bely not, Doats, as hardly within her own possession.
Compounds
C1. General attributive.
ΚΠ
1772 Documentary Hist. N.-Y. (1851) IV. 803 The Weak pretence of Hutts hastily Built on small Spotts of Ground which they Term possession Houses.
1871 E. B. Tylor Primitive Culture II. xiv. 115 The opinion that the possession-theory is..modelled on the ordinary theory of the soul acting on the body.
1921 Times 29 Oct. 5/7 In a possession case at Clerkenwell County Court, yesterday, if was stated that 20 persons were living in a house of five rooms and a kitchen.
1986 Lydney Observer 12 Sept. 11/3 Do make sure that whoever represents you has experience of acting for tenants in possession cases.
1994 Capilano Rev. Fall 68 Werner was doing weekends in jail on a possession charge.
C2.
possession man n. now historical a person authorized to take charge of goods (as furniture, etc.) upon which there is a warrant for seizure.
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society > law > administration of justice > general proceedings > legal seizure or recovery of property > [noun] > seizing lands or goods > attachment of person or property for debt > trustee or receiver
trustee1708
receiver1768
receiptor1819
possession man1851
man in possession1876
1851 Times 18 Jan. 7/2 The plaintiff said, that he would not withdraw the possession-man unless 300l. were paid on the following morning.
1891 Daily News 1 Jan. 2/6 He and ‘a possession man’ went with a warrant of execution to levy on the defendant's goods for a debt and costs of over 7l.
1932 Times 17 June 11/4 Gribben was a possession man put into Solley's premises on May 11 by the County Court bailiff.
possession order n. an order made by a court of law directing that custody or occupancy of a property be given to the owner.
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society > law > administration of justice > court proceedings or procedure > judging > [noun] > judgement or decision of court > decision in writing or court order > other court orders
restraining order1780
administration order1848
restraint order1883
fraud order1905
possession order1920
variation order1940
Anton Piller order1978
1920 Times 5 Aug. 7/2 At the Westminster County Court, yesterday, a bachelor applicant asked for further time to remain in his flat, a possession order having been made.
1977 F. Branston Up & Coming Man ii. 17 Their large Edwardian semi-detached (three mortgages, possession orders pending on two of them).
1990 Daily Tel. 4 Aug. (Colour Suppl.) 30/1 It was three days before Christmas when the possession order dropped on to the doormat of Kay and John Short's Victorian home on Merseyside.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2006; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
possessionv.
/pəˈzɛʃn/, U.S. /pəˈzɛʃ(ə)n/ rare.† 1. transitive. To provide with possessions. Obsolete.
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the mind > possession > have or possess [verb (transitive)] > furnish with possessions
possession1602
1602 R. Carew Surv. Cornwall ii. f. 132v Sundry more Gentlemen this little Hundred possesseth and possessioneth.
2. transitive. To take possession of.
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1924 P. Mackaye Fine-pretty World ii. 94 Ef a hull herd of swine kin be possessioned of a pack of deevils, one leetle shoat mought be possessioned of a baby.
1974 J. P. D. Dunbabin Rural Discontent Nineteenth Cent. Brit. 20 On 6 September 1830 about a thousand people openly circumambulated the moor as of old, possessioning it and breaking any obstacles in their path.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2006; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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