compulsive

Definitions


[kəmˈpʌlsɪv], (Adjective)

Definitions:
- resulting from or relating to an irresistible urge
(e.g: compulsive eating)

- irresistibly interesting or exciting; compelling
(e.g: this play is compulsive viewing)


Phrases:

Origin:
late 16th century (in the sense ‘compulsory’): from medieval Latin compulsivus, from compuls- ‘driven, forced’, from the verb compellere (see compel). compulsive (originally a term in psychology) dates from the early 20th century




definition by Oxford Dictionaries