preoccupiern.
/prɪˈɒkjᵿpʌɪə/, /priːˈɒkjᵿpʌɪə/, U.S. /priˈɑkjəˌpaɪər/ Now rare.
A person who or thing which preoccupies (in various senses).
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > attention > attracting attention > [noun] > subject of interest
concernmenta1661
preoccupier1746
concern1802
the mind > mental capacity > thought > continued thinking, reflection, contemplation > thinking about, consideration, deliberation > [noun] > one who ponders
ponderer?1526
considerera1568
contemplator1597
deliberator1598
surveyor1606
chewer1612
head-scratcher1618
considerator1658
reflecter1665
reflector1665
deliberant1672
preoccupier1746
ruminator1758
phrontist1822
incubator1851
1746 E. Kimber in London Mag. Dec. 622/1 Like our Preoccupiers, the Antient Britons, the Indians perform all religious Ceremonies and Mysteries in the deepest Retreat of the Woods.
1863 C. C. Clarke Shakespeare-characters xvii. 430 Is he not almost the sole preoccupier of the mind whenever it recurs to these plays?
1891 Amer. Naturalist 25 646 We cannot agree with him in changing a name as preoccupied, so long as it differs from the supposed preoccupier by one letter.
2003 N.Y. Times (Nexis) 7 Jan. f6/1 Sex continues to be the great preoccupier.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2007; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
<
n.1746