behavioral
Americanadjective
-
relating to a person’s manner of behaving or acting.
The program provides academic and behavioral supports for students of concern.
Most of our biggest health risks are largely preventable with behavioral change.
-
Psychology, Animal Behavior. relating to or studying observable activity in a human or animal, often thought of as the aggregate of responses to external and internal stimuli.
This psychiatry textbook offers a thorough discussion of both the behavioral sciences and clinical psychiatry.
Harassment of wild marine mammals has disrupted their behavioral patterns, including migration, breeding, and feeding.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of behavioral
First recorded in 1925–30; behavior ( def. ) + -al 1 ( def. )
Vocabulary lists containing behavioral
Evolutionary Biology - Natural Selection - Middle School
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Evolutionary Biology - Adaptation
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Evolutionary Biology - Natural Selection - High School
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Is Holmes’ husband trying to maneuver the situation because he cares for his wife, or because his behavioral patterns mirror those of Balwani and Holmes’ assailant?
From Salon ● Oct. 17, 2026
Replacing real consumption with digital simulation might sound unusual, but behavioral scientists say substitution mechanisms like this can help.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 13, 2026
In the same way that cognitive behavioral therapy teaches patients to recontextualize their thoughts and feelings to produce different behaviors, writing stand-up requires people to reexamine their struggles and recontextualize them into punch lines.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2026
The researchers say future work could combine behavioral monitoring with physiological measurements to provide a more complete picture of how different feeding strategies affect animal welfare and well-being.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 7, 2026
But not before she put in a formal request for me to see a behavioral counselor at the district main offices.
From "Counting by 7s" by Holly Goldberg Sloan
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
