occupy
UK: ˈɒkjʊpaɪ | US: ˈɑːkjʊpaɪ
vt. to reside or have control over a space or territory
vt. to engage or employ someone’s attention or time
vt. to hold a position or office
Derived from Latin occupare ("to seize, possess"), combining ob- (toward) + capere (to take). The morpheme oc- (variant of ob-) implies direction, while -cup- retains the core meaning of "taking." Over time, the word evolved from physical seizure (land, space) to abstract control (attention, roles). The -y suffix marks it as a verb in English.
The army plans to occupy the strategic border region.
Her work continues to occupy most of her time.
He will occupy the role of director starting next month.
Worrying thoughts occupied his mind all night.
The new museum occupies a historic building downtown.