behaviour
Americannoun
noun
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manner of behaving or conducting oneself
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behaving with careful good manners
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psychol
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the aggregate of all the responses made by an organism in any situation
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a specific response of a certain organism to a specific stimulus or group of stimuli
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the action, reaction, or functioning of a system, under normal or specified circumstances
Spelling
See -or 1.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of behaviour
C15: from behave ; influenced in form by Middle English havior , from Old French havoir , from Latin habēre to have
Explanation
Your behaviour is the way you act in various situations. Note that this word ends with "our," which is the British spelling, while the American English spelling is behavior. This discrepancy is common, and either spelling is correct. The Late Middle English word behavoure meant "to have possession," which seemingly refers to a person in control of his or her actions. If you are accused of childish behaviour, you might be acting as though you have little self-control. Scottish musician Shirley Manson once said: "A lot of celebrities just want money, fame, power, fancy cars, houses all over the world and have people bow down to them. To me, that's frightful behaviour."
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.
"They have experienced problems at previous events including noise, parking problems, and anti-social behaviour."
From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026
To the men watching him, that behaviour made Tice look less like a journalist and more like someone from the CIA.
From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026
"People may revert to their prior behavioural patterns because the incentive payments are insufficient when the enthusiasm has waned," said Ferraro, an expert in human behaviour and public policy.
From Barron's ● Sep. 17, 2026
Currently, she said this kind of behaviour is only illegal if it is done with clear intent to cause fear, harm and distress.
From BBC ● Sep. 16, 2026
But I couldn’t because my own behaviour had hardly put me in a position to question anyone else’s.
From "Code Name Kingfisher" by Liz Kessler
Definitions 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.
