Both Uses of
preoccupied
in
A Tale of Two Cities
- He even showed surprise when he saw Mr. Lorry, and was altogether in an absent and preoccupied state.†
Chpt 2.12 *preoccupied = took up the attention of
- A rose lay beside her, and if she now and then glanced at the flower, it was with no infraction of her usual preoccupied air.†
Chpt 2.16
Definitions:
-
(1)
(preoccupied) busy thinking about or doing something so that other things are not noticed or done
-
(2)
(meaning too rare to warrant focus) meaning too rare to warrant focus:
Much more rarely, preoccupied can mean that someone has already inhabited or taken something.