habit

hab·it

Use habit in a sentence

Smoking is a bad habit.

noun

The definition of habit is something that you do regularly, or an addiction.

Brushing your teeth every morning and every night is an example of a good habit.
Being addicted to heroin is an example of having a heroin habit.

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"habit." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 16 April 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/HABIT>.

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habit. (n.d.). Retrieved April 16th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/HABIT

habit

Obs. costume; dress
a particular costume showing rank, status, etc.; specif.,
1. a distinctive religious costume: a monk's habit
2. a costume worn for certain occasions: a riding habit
habitual or characteristic condition of mind or body; disposition
1. a thing done often and hence, usually, done easily; practice; custom
2. a pattern of action that is acquired and has become so automatic that it is difficult to break
a tendency to perform a certain action or behave in a certain way; usual way of doing something
an addiction, esp. to narcotics
Biol. the tendency of a plant or animal to grow in a certain way; characteristic growth: a twining habit

Origin of habit

Middle English from Old French from Classical Latin habitus, condition, appearance, dress from past participle of habere, to have, hold from Indo-European base an unverified form ghabh-, to grasp, take from source give

Now Rare to dress; clothe
Archaic to inhabit

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"habit." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 16 April 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/HABIT>.

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habit. (n.d.). Retrieved April 16th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/HABIT

habit

noun

a. A recurrent, often unconscious pattern of behavior that is acquired through frequent repetition: made a habit of going to bed early.
b. An established disposition of the mind or character: a pessimistic habit.
c. Customary manner or practice: an early riser by habit.
d. An addiction, especially to a narcotic drug.
Characteristic appearance, form, or manner of growth, especially of a plant or crystal: “The habit of an apple tree is fine for the small garden” ( Robert Dash )
a. A distinctive set of clothing or style of dressing, especially of a religious order.
b. A riding habit.
Archaic Physical constitution.

transitive verb

hab·it·ed, hab·it·ing, hab·its

To clothe; dress.
To clothe in a habit, especially a nun's habit.

Origin of habit

Middle English clothing from Old French clothing, behavior, custom from Latin habitus from past participle of habēre to have ; see ghabh- in Indo-European roots.

THE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

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"habit." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 16 April 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/HABIT>.

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habit. (n.d.). Retrieved April 16th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/HABIT

The characteristic shape of a crystal, such as the cubic habit that is characteristic of pyrite.
The characteristic manner of growth of a plant. For example, grape plants and ivy display a vining habit.

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"habit." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 16 April 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/HABIT>.

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habit. (n.d.). Retrieved April 16th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/HABIT

habit

habit practice custom usage use wont habitude

These nouns denote patterns of behavior established by continual repetition. Habit applies to a behavior or practice so ingrained that it is often done without conscious thought: “Habit rules the unreflecting herd” (William Wordsworth). Practice denotes an often chosen pattern of individual or group behavior: “You will find it a very good practice always to verify your references, sir” (Martin Joseph Routh). Custom is behavior as established by long practice and especially by accepted conventions: “No written law has ever been more binding than unwritten custom supported by popular opinion” (Carrie Chapman Catt). Usage refers to an accepted standard for a group that regulates individual behavior: “laws … corrected, altered, and amended by acts of parliament and common usage” (William Blackstone). Use and wont are terms for customary and distinctive practice: “situations where the use and wont of their fathers no longer meet their necessities” (J.A. Froude). Habitude refers to an individual's behaving in a certain way rather than a specific act: “His real habitude gave life and grace/To appertainings and to ornament” (Shakespeare).

habit practice custom usage use wont habitude

These nouns denote patterns of behavior established by continual repetition. Habit applies to a behavior or practice so ingrained that it is often done without conscious thought: “Habit rules the unreflecting herd” (William Wordsworth). Practice denotes an often chosen pattern of individual or group behavior: “You will find it a very good practice always to verify your references, sir” (Martin Joseph Routh). Custom is behavior as established by long practice and especially by accepted conventions: “No written law has ever been more binding than unwritten custom supported by popular opinion” (Carrie Chapman Catt). Usage refers to an accepted standard for a group that regulates individual behavior: “laws … corrected, altered, and amended by acts of parliament and common usage” (William Blackstone). Use and wont are terms for customary and distinctive practice: “situations where the use and wont of their fathers no longer meet their necessities” (J.A. Froude). Habitude refers to an individual's behaving in a certain way rather than a specific act: “His real habitude gave life and grace/To appertainings and to ornament” (Shakespeare).

THE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

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"habit." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 16 April 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/HABIT>.

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habit. (n.d.). Retrieved April 16th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/HABIT

Noun

(plural habits)

An action done on a regular basis.
It’s become a habit of mine to have a cup of coffee after dinner.
An action performed repeatedly and automatically, usually without awareness.
By force of habit, he dressed for work even though it was holiday.
A long piece of clothing worn by monks and nuns.
It’s interesting how Catholic and Buddhist monks both wear habits.
A piece of clothing worn uniformly for a specific activity.
The new riding habits of the team looked smashing!
(archaic) Outward appearance; attire; dress.
(botany) form of growth or general appearance of a variety or species of plant, e.g. erect, prostrate, bushy.
An addiction.
He has a 10-cigar habit.

Origin

From Middle English, from Old French habit, from Latin habitus (“condition, bearing, state, appearance, dress, attire”), from habeō (“I have, hold, keep”); see have.

Verb

(third-person singular simple present habits, present participle habiting, simple past and past participle habited)

To clothe.
(archaic) To inhabit.

Origin

From Middle English habiten, from Old French habiter, from Latin habitāre, present active infinitive of habitō, frequentative of habeō (“I have, hold, keep”); see have.

English Wiktionary. Available under CC-BY-SA license.

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"habit." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 16 April 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/HABIT>.

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habit. (n.d.). Retrieved April 16th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/HABIT

habit - Medical Definition

n.

A recurrent, often unconscious pattern of behavior that is acquired through frequent repetition: made a habit of going to bed early.
An established disposition of the mind or character: a pessimistic habit.
Customary manner or practice: an early riser by habit.
An addiction, especially to a narcotic drug.