prepossessing

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prepossessing

Where it comes from

From prepossess + -ing. Attested in 1610s with the meaning of "getting possession of (ground or land) beforehand". The meaning "to possess (a person) beforehand with a feeling, notion, etc." developed in 1630s, acquiring by the 40s of the same century the meaning of "to cause (someone) to have a favorable opinion of something, preoccupy the mind or heart of".

adjective more prepossessing · most prepossessing

Tending to invite favor; attracting confidence, favor, esteem, or love; attractive "I am a great advocate for timidity—and I am sure one does not often meet with it.—But in those who are at all inferior, it is extremely prepossessing."
Similar: pleasing
archaic Causing prejudice.

verb

gerund, participle, present present participle and gerund of prepossess

Translations

Every language

adj tending to invite favour; attractive

Français	avenant
Русский	прия́тный prijátnyj, располага́ющий raspolagájuščij

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MLA

"prepossessing." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/prepossessing. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

prepossessing. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/prepossessing

Chicago

"prepossessing." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/prepossessing.

BibTeX

@misc{prepossessing_2026,
  title = {prepossessing},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/prepossessing},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}