/ kəmˈpʌlsɪv; NAmE / adjective
1.
( of behaviour ) that is difficult to stop or control :
compulsive eating / spending / gambling
2.
( of people ) not being able to control their behaviour :
a compulsive drinker / gambler / liar
3.
that makes you pay attention to it because it is so interesting and exciting :
The programme made compulsive viewing.
► com·pul·sive·ly adverb :
She watched him compulsively.
a compulsively readable book
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WORD ORIGIN
late 16th cent. (in the sense compulsory ): from medieval Latin compulsivus , from compuls- driven, forced, from the verb compellere , from com- together + pellere drive. Sense 1 (originally a term in psychology) dates from the early 20th cent.