Synonyms for POSSESS
pəˈzɛspos·sess

WiktionaryRate these synonyms:4.0 / 1 vote

1. possessverb

   Synonyms:
   seise

2. possessverb

   Synonyms:
   inhold

English Synonyms and AntonymsRate these synonyms:3.8 / 5 votes

1. possess

   Have is the most general word, and is applied to whatever belongs to or is connected with one; a man has a head or a head-ache, a fortune or an opinion, a friend or an enemy; he has time, or has need; he may be said to have what is his own, what he has borrowed, what has been entrusted to him, or what he has stolen. To possess a thing is to have the ownership with control and enjoyment of it. To hold is to have in one's hand, or securely in one's control; a man holds his friend's coat for a moment, or he holds a struggling horse; he holds a promissory note, or holds an office. To own is to have the right of property in; to possess is to have that right in actual exercise; to occupy is to have possession and use, with some degree of permanency, with or without ownership. A man occupies his own house or a room in a hotel; a man may own a farm of which he is not in possession because a tenant occupies it and is determined to hold it; the proprietor owns the property, but the tenant is in possession. To be in possession differs from possess in that to possess denotes both right and fact, while to be in possession denotes simply the fact with no affirmation as to the right. To have reason is to be endowed with the faculty; to be in possession of one's reason denotes that the faculty is in actual present exercise.

   Synonyms:
   be in possession of, be possessed of, have, hold, occupy, own

Complete Dictionary of Synonyms and AntonymsRate these synonyms:2.0 / 1 vote

1. possess

   Synonyms:
   occupy, enjoy, have, hold, entertain, own

   Antonyms:
   abandon, renounce, abjure, surrender, lose, forfeit, resign

Princeton's WordNetRate these synonyms:1.0 / 2 votes

1. possessverb

   have as an attribute, knowledge, or skill

   "he possesses great knowledge about the Middle East"

   Synonyms:
   own, have

2. own, have, possessverb

   have ownership or possession of

   "He owns three houses in Florida"; "How many cars does she have?"

   Synonyms:
   get, have, feature, deliver, suffer, accept, ingest, cause, experience, hold, let, sustain, give birth, take in, give, birth, receive, consume, own, possess, take, throw, bear, have got, induce, make, stimulate

3. possessverb

   enter into and control, as of emotions or ideas

   "What possessed you to buy this house?"; "A terrible rage possessed her"

   Synonyms:
   own, have

Matched Categories

1. • Dominate
   • Have

Dictionary of English SynonymesRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. possessverb

   Synonyms:
   own, have a title to, be seized of

2. possessverb

   Synonyms:
   have, hold, occupy, control

3. possessverb

   Synonyms:
   put in possession

Synonyms, Antonyms & Associated WordsRate these synonyms:2.0 / 1 vote

1. possessverb

   Synonyms:
   own, have, hold, occupy, seize, take, appropriate

PPDB, the paraphrase databaseRate these paraphrases:0.0 / 0 votes

1. List of paraphrases for "possess":

   possession, have, own, hold, possessed, possessing

How to pronounce POSSESS?

How to say POSSESS in sign language?

Words popularity by usage frequency

How to use POSSESS in a sentence?

1. Juvenal:

   All wish to possess knowledge, but few, comparatively speaking, are willing to pay the price.

2. Thomas Mangan:

   It wasn't a disqualifying prohibition for him to own, possess or purchase a weapon as far as we were concerned.

3. Eleanor Roosevelt:

   A trait no other nation seems to possess in quite the same degree that we do -- namely, a feeling of almost childish injury and resentment unless the world as a whole recognizes how innocent we are of anything but the most generous and harmless intentions.

4. Amenorhu kwaku:

   Desiring something that you cannot possess is but a fruitless voyage.

5. I Ching:

   No plain not followed by a slope. No going not followed by a return. He who remains persevering in danger is without blame. Do not complain about this truth Enjoy the good fortune you still possess.