frequently_asked_questions_files/Oxford Thesaurus.pdf

The police put the house under 24-hour observation. The smuggled
weapon escaped the guard's observation. 2 comment, remark, note,
reflection, opinion, sentiment, point of view, impression,
feeling, commentary, criticism; utterance, word, announcement,
pronouncement, proclamation, declaration: She made a number of
trenchant observations concerning life in Britain today.
observe v. 1 obey, abide by, comply with, be heedful of, attend to,
conform to, regard, keep, follow, adhere to, respect, pay
attention to: We observed the prohibition against swimming. 2
watch, look at, examine, monitor, scrutinize, study, regard,
view, inspect, pore over, contemplate, consider , Colloq check
(out or up on), check over, size up, Slang case: The
naturalists went to the Arctic to observe the polar bears. 3
see, mark, notice, look, perceive: Observe how swiftly the skin
forms pustules when this substance is applied. 4 Sometimes,
observe on or upon. comment (on or upon), remark (on or upon),
mention, say, note, refer (to), make reference to, animadvert on
or upon or to; state, declare: It is impolite to observe on
others' manners. He couldn't help observing to his cell-mate how
easy it would be to escape. 5 celebrate, keep, solemnize,
respect, keep holy, mark, commemorate, memorialize, remember,
recognize: We always observe the sabbath.
observer n. witness, eyewitness, spectator, viewer, onlooker, beholder,
watcher, looker-on; non-participant: UN observers reported that
the battle was over.
obsess v. haunt, harass, plague, bedevil, torment, take over,
preoccupy, dominate, control, grip, possess, hold: He was
obsessed by the conviction that he could design a successful
flying machine.
obsession n. fixed idea, id‚e fixe, fixation, conviction, preoccupation,
prepossession, passion, mania, phobia, Colloq hang-up, thing:
Thoughts of death became his constant obsession.
obsessive adj. haunting, harassing, tormenting, dominating, controlling,
possessing, all-encompassing, passionate, unshakeable or
unshakable: She has an obsessive fear of heights.
obsolescent
adj. fading, waning, on the wane, declining, dying, on the way