habitat

[hab-i-tat] /ˈhæb ɪˌtæt/
noun
1.
the natural environment of an organism; place that is natural for the life and growth of an organism:
a tropical habitat.
2.
the place where a person or thing is usually found:
Paris is a major habitat of artists.
3.
a special environment for living in over an extended period, as an underwater research vessel.
4.
habitation (def 1).
Origin
1755-65; < Latin: it inhabits, 3rd singular present indicative of habitāre, frequentative of habēre to have, hold
Can be confused
biosphere, ecology, ecosystem, environment, habitat.
habitant, habitat.
Examples from the web for habitat
  • All animals affect their habitat.
  • Instead, research has focused on factors such as habitat loss and fragmentation.
  • Hulk gleefully prances through his natural habitat, free as a bird.
  • It could also be sent to the moon in advance of astronauts to start building a habitat before they get there.
  • Horror, mystery and science-fiction books have spread their genetic code to a foreign habitat: the literature section.
  • It's a pretty shabby habitat for creatures once displayed so proudly.
  • Culling and, yes, killing a portion of a herd seems a natural way of helping a group of animals and their habitat to thrive.
  • The population density of humans has gone way up and so has the habitat degradation.
  • Bush may be a free-range animal, but he has a habitat, in which he stays.
  • The tropics, apparently, can never become their habitat.
British Dictionary definitions for habitat

habitat

/ˈhæbɪˌtæt/
noun
1.
the environment in which an animal or plant normally lives or grows
2.
the place in which a person, group, class, etc, is normally found
Word Origin
C18: from Latin: it inhabits, from habitāre to dwell, from habēre to have
Word Origin and History for habitat
n.

1762, as a technical term in Latin texts on English flora and fauna, literally "it inhabits," third person singular present indicative of habitare "to live, dwell," frequentative of habere "to have, to hold, possess" (see habit (n.)). General sense of "dwelling place" is first attested 1854.

habitat in Science
habitat
  (hāb'ĭ-tāt')   
The area or natural environment in which an organism or population normally lives. A habitat is made up of physical factors such as soil, moisture, range of temperature, and availability of light as well as biotic factors such as the availability of food and the presence of predators. A habitat is not necessarily a geographic area—for a parasitic organism it is the body of its host or even a cell within the host's body.
habitat in Culture

habitat definition


The area or type of environment in which a particular kind of animal or plant usually lives.

habitat in Technology
networking, graphics
The original term for on-line graphical virtual communities or worlds. Created at Lucasfilm in 1985 by Randy Farmer and Chip Morningstar.
(https://communities.com/habitat.html).
(1996-06-12)