Meaning of "habit" in the English dictionary

ETYMOLOGY OF THE WORD HABIT

From Latin habitus custom, from habēre to have.

Etymology is the study of the origin of words and their changes in structure and significance.

PRONUNCIATION OF HABIT

habit  [ˈhæbɪt]

GRAMMATICAL CATEGORY OF HABIT

Habit is a verb and can also act as a noun.

A noun is a type of word the meaning of which determines reality. Nouns provide the names for all things: people, objects, sensations, feelings, etc.

The verb is the part of the sentence that is conjugated and expresses action and state of being.

See the conjugation of the verb habit in English.

WHAT DOES HABIT MEAN IN ENGLISH?

Habit

A habit is a routine of behavior that is repeated regularly and tends to occur unconsciously. In the American Journal of Psychology it is defined in this way: "A habit, from the standpoint of psychology, is a more or less fixed way of thinking, willing, or feeling acquired through previous repetition of a mental experience." Habitual behavior often goes unnoticed in persons exhibiting it, because a person does not need to engage in self-analysis when undertaking routine tasks. Habits are sometimes compulsory. The process by which new behaviours become automatic is habit formation. Old habits are hard to break and new habits are hard to form because the behavioural patterns we repeat are imprinted in our neural pathways, but it is possible to form new habits through repetition. As behaviors are repeated in a consistent context, there is an incremental increase in the link between the context and the action. This increases the automaticity of the behavior in that context. Features of an automatic behavior are all or some of: efficiency, lack of awareness, unintentionality, uncontrollability.

Definition of habit in the English dictionary

The first definition of habit in the dictionary is a tendency or disposition to act in a particular way. Other definition of habit is established custom, usual practice, etc. Habit is also a learned behavioural response that has become associated with a particular situation, esp one frequently repeated.

CONJUGATION OF THE VERB TO HABIT

PRESENT

Present

I habit

you habit

he/she/it habits

we habit

you habit

they habit

Present continuous

I am habiting

you are habiting

he/she/it is habiting

we are habiting

you are habiting

they are habiting

Present perfect

I have habited

you have habited

he/she/it has habited

we have habited

you have habited

they have habited

Present perfect continuous

I have been habiting

you have been habiting

he/she/it has been habiting

we have been habiting

you have been habiting

they have been habiting

Present tense is used to refer to circumstances that exist at the present time or over a period that includes the present time. The present perfect refers to past events, although it can be considered to denote primarily the resulting present situation rather than the events themselves.

PAST

Past

I habited

you habited

he/she/it habited

we habited

you habited

they habited

Past continuous

I was habiting

you were habiting

he/she/it was habiting

we were habiting

you were habiting

they were habiting

Past perfect

I had habited

you had habited

he/she/it had habited

we had habited

you had habited

they had habited

Past perfect continuous

I had been habiting

you had been habiting

he/she/it had been habiting

we had been habiting

you had been habiting

they had been habiting

Past tense forms express circumstances existing at some time in the past,

FUTURE

Future

I will habit

you will habit

he/she/it will habit

we will habit

you will habit

they will habit

Future continuous

I will be habiting

you will be habiting

he/she/it will be habiting

we will be habiting

you will be habiting

they will be habiting

Future perfect

I will have habited

you will have habited

he/she/it will have habited

we will have habited

you will have habited

they will have habited

Future perfect continuous

I will have been habiting

you will have been habiting

he/she/it will have been habiting

we will have been habiting

you will have been habiting

they will have been habiting

The future is used to express circumstances that will occur at a later time.

CONDITIONAL

Conditional

I would habit

you would habit

he/she/it would habit

we would habit

you would habit

they would habit

Conditional continuous

I would be habiting

you would be habiting

he/she/it would be habiting

we would be habiting

you would be habiting

they would be habiting

Conditional perfect

I would have habit

you would have habit

he/she/it would have habit

we would have habit

you would have habit

they would have habit

Conditional perfect continuous

I would have been habiting

you would have been habiting

he/she/it would have been habiting

we would have been habiting

you would have been habiting

they would have been habiting

Conditional or "future-in-the-past" tense refers to hypothetical or possible actions.

IMPERATIVE

Imperative

you habit
we let´s habit
you habit

The imperative is used to form commands or requests.

NONFINITE VERB FORMS

Infinitive

to habit

Past participle

habited

Present Participle

habiting

Infinitive shows the action beyond temporal perspective. The present participle or gerund shows the action during the session. The past participle shows the action after completion.

SYNONYMS OF «HABIT»

The following words have a similar or identical meaning as «habit» and belong to the same grammatical category.

synonyms of habit

addiction · apparel · array · attire · characteristic · clothe · compulsion · convention · costume · custom · dependence · dress · equip · fixation · foible · garb · garment · habiliment · manner · mannerism · mode · obsession · practice · proclivity · propensity · quirk · routine · rule · second nature · tendency · tradition · usage · way · weakness · wont

TRANSLATION OF HABIT

Find out the translation of habit to 25 languages with our English multilingual translator.

The translations of habit from English to other languages presented in this section have been obtained through automatic statistical translation; where the essential translation unit is the word «habit» in English.

• Translator English - Chinese: 习惯
• Translator English - Spanish: hábito
• English: habit
• Translator English - Hindi: आदत
• Translator English - Arabic: عادَة
• Translator English - Russian: привычка
• Translator English - Portuguese: hábito
• Translator English - Bengali: অভ্যাস
• Translator English - French: habitude
• Translator English - Malay: kebiasaan
• Translator English - German: Gewohnheit
• Translator English - Japanese: 癖
• Translator English - Korean: 습관
• Translator English - Javanese: Kebiasaan
• Translator English - Vietnamese: thói quen
• Translator English - Tamil: பழக்கம்
• Translator English - Marathi: सवय
• Translator English - Turkish: alışkanlık
• Translator English - Italian: abitudine
• Translator English - Polish: zwyczaj
• Translator English - Ukrainian: звичка
• Translator English - Romanian: obicei
• Translator English - Greek: συνήθεια
• Translator English - Afrikaans: gewoonte
• Translator English - Swedish: vana
• Translator English - Norwegian: vane

10 QUOTES WITH «HABIT»

Famous quotes and sentences with the word habit.

1

Lynn Abbey

My writing has to support more than my research habit, but I love to curl up with a book about some dusty corner of history.

2

Henry Adams

Chaos often breeds life, when order breeds habit.

3

Aristotle

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.

4

Jane Asher

I'm a creature of habit, so I like going to boutiques, rather than larger stores, where I know I'll find something that suits me every time.

5

Juliette Binoche

For me, habit is just a synonym for death.

6

Benjamin N. Cardozo

The constant assumption runs throughout the law that the natural and spontaneous evolutions of habit fix the limits of right and wrong.

7

Dale Carnegie

Feeling sorry for yourself, and your present condition, is not only a waste of energy but the worst habit you could possibly have.

8

Prince Charles

As you may possibly have noticed from time to time, I have tended to make a habit of sticking my head above the parapet and generally getting it shot off for pointing out what has always been blindingly obvious to me.

9

Joan Chen

Acting for me is not a bad habit like smoking that I must make an effort to quit. I love acting; I love directing.

10

Kenneth H. Cooper

There are six components of wellness: proper weight and diet, proper exercise, breaking the smoking habit, control of alcohol, stress management and periodic exams.

10 ENGLISH BOOKS RELATING TO «HABIT»

Discover the use of habit in the following bibliographical selection. Books relating to habit and brief extracts from same to provide context of its use in English literature.

The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do, and How to Change

In The Power of Habit, award-winning New York Times business reporter Charles Duhigg takes us to the thrilling edge of scientific discoveries that explain why habits exist and how they can be changed.

Charles Duhigg, 2012

The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business

The stories that Duhigg has knitted together are all fascinating in their own right, but take on an added dimension when wedded to his examination of habits.”— Associated Press “There’s been a lot of research over the past several ...

Charles Duhigg, 2012

Lick the Sugar Habit

In Lick the Sugar Habit, Dr. Nancy Appleton shows how sugar upsets body chemistry and devastates the endocrine and immune systems, to result in a host of diseases and conditions-from tooth decay to diabetes to osteoporosis.

Nancy Appleton, 1985

The Creative Habit: Learn It and Use It for Life

One of the world’s leading creative artists, choreographers, and creator of the smash-hit Broadway show, Movin’ Out, shares her secrets for developing and honing your creative talents—at once prescriptive and inspirational, a book to ...

Twyla Tharp, 2009

Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself: How to Lose Your Mind ...

In Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself, renowned author, speaker, researcher, and chiropractor Dr. Joe Dispenza combines the fields of quantum physics, neuroscience, brain chemistry, biology, and genetics to show you what is truly possible ...

Joe Dispenza, 2012

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in ...

Now repackaged for its 15th anniversary, this classic--in which Covey reveals a step-by-step pathway for living with fairness, integrity, honesty, and human dignity--includes a new Foreword and Afterword, and a newly designed jacket.

Stephen R. Covey, 2004

The Now Habit: A Strategic Program for Overcoming ...

This revised, redesigned edition offers strategies to help the reader understand & deal with the complex role played by technology in promoting procastination in the modern world.

Neil A. Fiore, 2007

Forces of Habit: Drugs and the Making of the Modern World

In this first book to study apes and dolphins side by side, a dolphin biologist and a primatologist who have spent their careers studying these animals in the wild, combine their insights with compelling results.

David T. COURTWRIGHT, David T Courtwright, 2009

The Habit of Being: Letters of Flannery O'Connor

Winner of the National Book Critics Circle Special Award "I have come to think that the true likeness of Flannery O'Connor will be painted by herself, a self-portrait in words, to be found in her letters .

Flannery O'Connor, Sally Fitzgerald, 1988

The 8th Habit: From Effectiveness to Greatness

Profound, compelling, and stunningly timely, this groundbreaking book of next-level thinking gives a clear way to finally tap the limitless value-creation promise of the “Knowledge Worker Age.” In the more than twenty-five years since ...

Stephen R. Covey, 2013

10 NEWS ITEMS WHICH INCLUDE THE TERM «HABIT»

Find out what the national and international press are talking about and how the term habit is used in the context of the following news items.

Cocaine habit led to £44k employer fraud at Bassets Honda - and …

Cocaine habit led to £44k employer fraud at Bassets Honda - and theft and burglary of friends. By SWEPnino | Posted: July 13, 2015. Daniel Joseph O'Connell ... «South Wales Evening Post, Jul 15»

Kicking the habit benefits babies

“It can be a difficult habit to kick for some of them. That's why I like to say we're also here like a support for them.” During the first session, ... «The Courier, Jul 15»

Police: Derby woman traded sex for money to support drug habit

LITCHFIELD -- A Derby woman who police say traded sex for money through an Internet dating service to support her heroin habit was ... «Waterbury Republican American, Jul 15»

Preachers of Habit

Redefining marriage in the courts may not have been difficult, but persuading Americans to accept it is another story entirely. Their supporters ... «Patriot Post, Jul 15»

Smokers can save thousands by giving up the habit

Kicking the smoking habit can be extremely difficult, but if there's a monetary benefit, it could mean smokers would be more likely to give up the ... «Fox 28, Jul 15»

Short Interest Update of The Habit Restaurants, Inc. (NASDAQ:HABT)

The Habit Restaurants, Inc. (NASDAQ:HABT), A reduction of 109,680 shares or 3.5% was observed in the short interest of The Habit ... «American Trade Journal, Jul 15»

Carlisle addict who sold drugs to fund habit jailed

A DRUG addict who became a dealer to fund his habit has been sent to prison. Carl Pattie, 26, was caught red-handed by police who called at ... «Cumbria Crack, Jul 15»

Tips to Develop an Exercise Habit

New research suggest that developing an exercise habit does not mean you must follow the same routine day in and day out. While following ... «PsychCentral.com, Jul 15»

Good Day Cafe: The Velveteen Habit

PORTLAND (WPFO) -- The Velveteen Habit opened in Ogunquit in April, and they are putting a new spin on some old fashion cuisine. Chef Chris Wilcox ... «WGME, Jul 15»

Truth Bomb: Your porn habit is asking a MUCH bigger problem

Even though sexual addictions, such a porn addiction, are becoming more and more accepted as real problems, not just convenient excuses ... «Citifmonline, Jul 15»