Adjacent Words

Habit definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

HAB'IT, n. [L. habitus, from habeo,to have to hold. See Have.]
1. Garb; dress; clothes or garments in general.
The scenes are old, the habits are the same,
We wore last year.
There are among the statues, several of Venus,
in different habits.
2. A coat worn by ladies over other garments.
3. State of any thing; implying some continuance or permanence; temperament or particular state of a body, formed by nature or induced by extraneous circumstances; as a costive or lax habit of body; a sanguine habit.
4. A disposition or condition of the mind or body acquired by custom or a frequent repetition of the same act. Habit is that which is held or retained, the effect of custom or frequent repetition. Hence we speak of good habits and bad habits.
Frequent drinking of spirits leads to a habit of intemperance. We should endeavor to correct evil habits by a change of practice. A great point in the education of children, is to prevent the formation of bad habits.
Habit of plants, the general form or appearance, or the conformity of plants of the same kind in structure and growth.
HAB'IT, v.t. To dress; to clothe; to array.
They habited themselves like rural deities.
HAB'IT, v.t. To dwell; to inhabit.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: an established custom; "it was their habit to dine at 7 every evening" [syn: habit, wont]
2: (psychology) an automatic pattern of behavior in reaction to a specific situation; may be inherited or acquired through frequent repetition; "owls have nocturnal habits"; "she had a habit twirling the ends of her hair"; "long use had hardened him to it" [syn: habit, use]
3: a distinctive attire worn by a member of a religious order
4: the general form or mode of growth (especially of a plant or crystal); "a shrub of spreading habit"
5: attire that is typically worn by a horseback rider (especially a woman's attire) [syn: habit, riding habit]
6: excessive use of drugs [syn: substance abuse, drug abuse, habit] v
1: put a habit on

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin habitus condition, character, from hab?re to have, hold — more at give Date: 13th century 1. archaic clothing 2. a. a costume characteristic of a calling, rank, or function <a nun's habit> b. a costume worn for horseback riding 3. manner of conducting oneself ; bearing 4. bodily appearance or makeup <a man of fleshy habit> 5. the prevailing disposition or character of a person's thoughts and feelings ; mental makeup 6. a settled tendency or usual manner of behavior <her habit of taking a morning walk> 7. a. a behavior pattern acquired by frequent repetition or physiologic exposure that shows itself in regularity or increased facility of performance b. an acquired mode of behavior that has become nearly or completely involuntary <got up early from force of habit> c. addiction <a drug habit> 8. characteristic mode of growth or occurrence <a grass similar to Indian corn in habit> 9. of a crystal characteristic assemblage of forms at crystallization leading to a usual appearance ; shape Synonyms: habit, practice, usage, custom, wont mean a way of acting fixed through repetition. habit implies a doing unconsciously and often compulsively <had a habit of tapping his fingers>. practice suggests an act or method followed with regularity and usually through choice <our practice is to honor all major credit cards>. usage suggests a customary action so generally followed that it has become a social norm <western-style dress is now common usage in international business>. custom applies to a practice or usage so steadily associated with an individual or group as to have almost the force of unwritten law <the custom of wearing black at funerals>. wont usually applies to an habitual manner, method, or practice of an individual or group <as was her wont, she slept until noon>. II. transitive verb Date: 1594 clothe, dress

Britannica Concise

In psychology, any regularly repeated behavior that requires little or no thought and is learned rather than innate. Some habits (e.g., tying a shoelace) may conserve higher mental processes for more demanding tasks, but others promote behavioral inflexibility or are unhealthy. Five methods are commonly used to break unwanted habits: replacing the old response with a new one, repeating the behavior until it becomes unpleasant, separating the individual from the stimulus that prompts the response, habituation, and punishment.

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. & v. --n. 1 a settled or regular tendency or practice (often foll. by of + verbal noun: has a habit of ignoring me). 2 a practice that is hard to give up. 3 a mental constitution or attitude. 4 Psychol. an automatic reaction to a specific situation. 5 colloq. an addictive practice, esp. of taking drugs. 6 a the dress of a particular class, esp. of a religious order. b (in full riding-habit) a woman's riding-dress. c archaic dress, attire. 7 a bodily constitution. 8 Biol. & Crystallog. a mode of growth. --v.tr. (usu. as habited adj.) clothe. Phrases and idioms: habit-forming causing addiction. make a habit of do regularly. Etymology: ME f. OF abit f. L habitus f. habere habit- have, be constituted

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Habit Hab"itn. [OE. habit, abit fr. habit fr. L. habitus state, appearance, dress, fr. habere to have, be in a condition; prob. akin to E. have. See Have, and cf. Able, Binnacle, Debt, Due, Exhibit, Malady.] 1. The usual condition or state of a person or thing, either natural or acquired, regarded as something had, possessed, and firmly retained; as, a religious habit; his habit is morose; elms have a spreading habit; esp., physical temperament or constitution; as, a full habit of body. 2. (Biol.) The general appearance and manner of life of a living organism. 3. Fixed or established custom; ordinary course of conduct; practice; usage; hence, prominently, the involuntary tendency or aptitude to perform certain actions which is acquired by their frequent repetition; as, habit is second nature; also, peculiar ways of acting; characteristic forms of behavior. A man of very shy, retired habits. --W. Irving. 4. Outward appearance; attire; dress; hence, a garment; esp., a closely fitting garment or dress worn by ladies; as, a riding habit. Costly thy habit as thy purse can buy. --Shak. There are, among the states, several of Venus, in different habits. --Addison. Syn: Practice; mode; manner; way; custom; fashion. Usage: Habit, Custom. Habit is a disposition or tendency leading us to do easily, naturally, and with growing certainty, what we do often; custom is external, being habitual use or the frequent repetition of the same act. The two operate reciprocally on each other. The custom of giving produces a habit of liberality; habits of devotion promote the custom of going to church. Custom also supposes an act of the will, selecting given modes of procedure; habit is a law of our being, a kind of ``second nature'' which grows up within us. How use doth breed a habit in a man ! --Shak. He who reigns . . . upheld by old repute, Consent, or custom. --Milton.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Habit Hab"it (h[a^]b"[i^]t), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Habited; p. pr. & vb. n. Habiting.] [OE. habiten to dwell, F. habiter, fr. L. habitare to have frequently, to dwell, intens. fr. habere to have. See Habit, n.] 1. To inhabit. [Obs.] In thilke places as they [birds] habiten. --Rom. of R. 2. To dress; to clothe; to array. They habited themselves lite those rural deities. --Dryden. 3. To accustom; to habituate. [Obs.] Chapman.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(habits) Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English. 1. A habit is something that you do often or regularly. He has an endearing habit of licking his lips when he's nervous... Many people add salt to their food out of habit, without even tasting it first. ...a survey on eating habits in the UK. N-VAR: oft N of -ing 2. A habit is an action which is considered bad that someone does repeatedly and finds it difficult to stop doing. A good way to break the habit of eating too quickly is to put your knife and fork down after each mouthful... After twenty years as a chain smoker Mr Nathe has given up the habit. N-COUNT: oft N of -ing 3. A drug habit is an addiction to a drug such as heroin or cocaine. She became a prostitute in order to pay for her cocaine habit. N-COUNT: supp N 4. A habit is a piece of clothing shaped like a long loose dress, which a nun or monk wears. N-COUNT 5. If you say that someone is a creature of habit, you mean that they usually do the same thing at the same time each day, rather than doing new and different things. PHRASE: creature inflects, usu v-link PHR 6. If you are in the habit of doing something, you do it regularly or often. If you get into the habit of doing something, you begin to do it regularly or often. They were in the habit of giving two or three dinner parties a month... I got into the habit of calling in on Gloria on my way home from work. PHRASE: v-link PHR -ing 7. If you make a habit of doing something, you do it regularly or often. You can phone me at work as long as you don't make a habit of it. PHRASE: V inflects, PHR -ing/n

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. n. 1. Condition (of the body), constitution, temperament. 2. Custom (of an individual), usage, wont, practice, habitude, way, manner, second nature. 3. Dress, garb. See habiliment. II. v. a. Dress, clothe, array, attire, accoutre.

Moby Thesaurus

a habit, accouter, acquired tolerance, acute alcoholism, addictedness, addiction, alcoholism, amphetamine withdrawal symptoms, apparel, array, attire, attitude, automatism, bad habit, barbiturate addiction, barbiturism, bedizenment, bent, bib and tucker, body-build, brand, caparison, cast, chain smoking, character, characteristic, characteristics, chronic alcoholism, clothes, clothing, cocainism, complexion, composition, compulsion, constituents, constitution, convention, costume, crash, crasis, craving, creature of habit, custom, dependence, dharma, diathesis, dipsomania, disguise, disposition, drapery, dress, dressing, drug addiction, drug culture, drug dependence, duds, equip, ethos, fashion, fatigues, feathers, fiber, fig, fit, fit out, force of habit, frame, frame of mind, frock, garb, garments, gear, genius, grain, guise, habiliment, habiliments, habit pattern, habituation, habitude, hue, humor, humors, idiosyncrasy, ilk, inclination, investiture, investment, kind, linen, livery, makeup, manner, mannerism, masquerade, minauderie, mode, mold, nature, nicotine addiction, outfit, pattern, peculiar trait, peculiarity, penchant, physical dependence, physique, policy, practice, praxis, predisposition, proclivity, propensity, property, psychological dependence, quality, quirk, rags, raiment, regalia, rig, rig out, rig up, robes, routine, rule, second nature, somatotype, sort, spirit, sportswear, stamp, stereotype, stereotyped behavior, streak, stripe, style, suchness, suit, system, temper, temperament, tendency, tenor, threads, togs, toilette, tolerance, tone, trademark, trick, trick of behavior, trim, turn out, type, uniform, usage, use, vein, vestment, vestments, vesture, way, wear, wearing apparel, withdrawal sickness, withdrawal symptoms, wont