fixated; fixating
1
: to focus or concentrate one's gaze or attention intently or obsessively
… he was fixating on the airport in the distance, trying to find the assigned runway.—
Richard L. Collins
Richard L. Collins… the tourist mind tended to fixate on ice cream cones …—T. Coraghessan Boyle
T. Coraghessan Boyle2
: to undergo arrestment at a stage of development
1
: to make fixed, stationary, or unchanging
2
: to focus one's gaze on
3
: to direct (the libido) toward an infantile form of gratification
Examples of fixate in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The inevitable tendency when someone goes like that — and many of us have had this happen in their lives — is to fixate on what was going through the person’s life.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 2 Apr. 2026
Hormendy also cautioned the media about fixating on distraction.
—Jeff Capellini, CBS News, 24 Mar. 2026
No surprise, then, that Kim is initially skeptical of Sean’s conspiracy theories, assuming her aimless husband to be fixating on trivial nonsense.
—Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 16 Mar. 2026
Parasocially fixating on microcelebrities who want their money.
—Charlie Warzel, The Atlantic, 14 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for fixate
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Chris Willman, Variety, 2 Apr. 2026
Hormendy also cautioned the media about fixating on distraction.
—Jeff Capellini, CBS News, 24 Mar. 2026
No surprise, then, that Kim is initially skeptical of Sean’s conspiracy theories, assuming her aimless husband to be fixating on trivial nonsense.
—Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 16 Mar. 2026
Parasocially fixating on microcelebrities who want their money.
—Charlie Warzel, The Atlantic, 14 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for fixate
Cite this Entry
“Fixate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fixate. Accessed 5 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
fixate
verb
fix·ate
ˈfik-ˌsāt 
fixated; fixating
1
: to focus one's gaze on
2
: to direct (the libido) toward an infantile form of gratification
1
: to focus or concentrate one's gaze or attention
an infant with normal vision … will fixate on a light held before him—The Journal of the American Medical Association
The Journal of the American Medical Association2
: to undergo arrestment at a stage of development
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