habit1

[hab-it] /ˈhæb ɪt/
noun
1.
an acquired behavior pattern regularly followed until it has become almost involuntary:
the habit of looking both ways before crossing the street.
2.
customary practice or use:
Daily bathing is an American habit.
3.
a particular practice, custom, or usage:
the habit of shaking hands.
4.
a dominant or regular disposition or tendency; prevailing character or quality:
She has a habit of looking at the bright side of things.
5.
addiction, especially to narcotics (often preceded by the).
6.
mental character or disposition:
a habit of mind.
7.
characteristic bodily or physical condition.
8.
the characteristic form, aspect, mode of growth, etc., of an organism:
a twining habit.
9.
the characteristic crystalline form of a mineral.
10.
garb of a particular rank, profession, religious order, etc.:
a monk's habit.
11.
the attire worn by a rider of a saddle horse.
verb (used with object)
12.
to clothe; array.
Origin
1175-1225; Middle English < Latin habitus state, style, practice, equivalent to habi- (variant stem of habēre to have) + -tus verbal noun suffix; replacing Middle English abit < Old French
Synonyms
2. bent, wont. 3. See custom. 10. dress, costume. 12. dress, garb, attire; deck out.

habit2

[hab-it] /ˈhæb ɪt/
verb (used with object)
1.
Archaic. to dwell in.
verb (used without object)
2.
Obsolete. to dwell.
Origin
1325-75; Middle English habiten < Latin habitāre to inhabit; see habitat
Examples from the web for habit
  • There's a habit that's had scientists puzzled: the practice of geophagy-eating dirt.
  • We have a tendency to lob antibiotic drugs at the little varmints, and they have a nasty habit of evolving their way around them.
  • The habit of helping is another reason so many volunteers were already in Haiti.
  • He's supporting his habit, and he's rationalizing the fact that he's doing something he was raised to believe was wrong.
  • We are creatures of habit.
  • Another good habit, he said, is to view marital discord as a changing weather pattern.
  • Here are some habits that can fine-tune your mind.
  • In the end, we are our habits, so take time developing good ones.
  • Those dogs have the weird habit of being shy and out-of-the-way during the day.
  • The little pill helped him break the smoking habit.
British Dictionary definitions for habit

habit

/ˈhæbɪt/
noun
1.
a tendency or disposition to act in a particular way
2.
established custom, usual practice, etc
3.
(psychol) a learned behavioural response that has become associated with a particular situation, esp one frequently repeated
4.
mental disposition or attitude: a good working habit of mind
5.
  1. a practice or substance to which a person is addicted: drink has become a habit with him
  2. the state of being dependent on something, esp a drug
6.
(botany, zoology) the method of growth, type of existence, behaviour, or general appearance of a plant or animal: a climbing habit, a burrowing habit
7.
the customary apparel of a particular occupation, rank, etc, now esp the costume of a nun or monk
8.
Also called riding habit. a woman's riding dress
9.
(crystallog) short for crystal habit
verb (transitive)
10.
to clothe
11.
an archaic word for inhabit, habituate
Word Origin
C13: from Latin habitus custom, from habēre to have
Word Origin and History for habit
n.

early 13c., "characteristic attire of a religious or clerical order," from Old French habit, abit (12c.) "clothing, (ecclesiastical) habit; conduct," from Latin habitus "condition, demeanor, appearance, dress," originally past participle of habere "to have, to hold, possess," from PIE root *ghabh- "to seize, take, hold, have, give, receive" (cf. Sanskrit gabhasti- "hand, forearm;" Old Irish gaibim "I take, hold, I have," gabal "act of taking;" Lithuanian gabana "armful," gabenti "to remove;" Gothic gabei "riches;" Old English giefan, Old Norse gefa "to give").

Base sense probably "to hold," which can be either in offering or in taking. Applied in Latin to both inner and outer states of being, and taken over in both sense by English, though meaning of "dress" is now restricted to monks and nuns. Meaning "customary practice" is early 14c. Drug sense is from 1887.

v.

mid-14c., "to dwell," from Old French habiter "to dwell, inhabit; have dealings with," from Latin habitare "to live, dwell," frequentative of habere "to have, to hold, possess" (see habit (n.)). Meaning "to dress" is from 1580s; "to habituate" from 1610s; "to make a habit of" from 1660s. Related: Habited; habiting.

habit in Medicine

habit hab·it (hāb'ĭt)
n.

  1. A recurrent, often unconscious, pattern of behavior that is acquired through frequent repetition.

  2. Physical constitution.

  3. An addiction, especially to a narcotic drug.

habit in Science
habit
  (hāb'ĭt)   

  1. The characteristic shape of a crystal, such as the cubic habit that is characteristic of pyrite.

  2. The characteristic manner of growth of a plant. For example, grape plants and ivy display a vining habit.


Slang definitions & phrases for habit

habit

noun

Drug addiction: I had a great big habit (1897+ Narcotics)

Related Terms

chuck habit, garbage habit, ice cream habit, off the habit


Idioms and Phrases with habit

habit

see: kick a habit