habitual
Americanadjective
-
of the nature of a habit; fixed by or resulting from habit.
habitual courtesy.
-
(of a person) having developed a specified character through force of habit.
a habitual gossip.
- Synonyms:
- inveterate, confirmed
- Antonyms:
- occasional
-
commonly used, followed, observed, etc., as by a particular person; customary.
She took her habitual place at the table.
- Synonyms:
- regular, accustomed
- Antonyms:
- unaccustomed
adjective
-
(usually prenominal) done or experienced regularly and repeatedly
the habitual Sunday walk
-
(usually prenominal) by habit
a habitual drinker
-
customary; usual
his habitual comment
Related Words
See usual.
Other Word Forms
- habitually adverb
- habitualness noun
- nonhabitual adjective
- nonhabitualness noun
- quasi-habitual adjective
- unhabitual adjective
Etymology
Origin of habitual
First recorded in 1520–30; from Medieval Latin habituālis “relating to dress, condition, or habit,” equivalent to Latin habitu(s) habit 1 + -ālis -al 1
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.
One could also ask, though, more basically whether this defendant would qualify as a habitual user, and I want to explore that before we lose track of it.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 10, 2026
Justice Neil Gorsuch, a conservative, pushed back saying that even early American presidents might have qualified as "habitual drunkards" by the standards of today.
From Barron's • Mar. 2, 2026
As any habitual social media user, King's College London professor Alan Read did not pay much heed to the occasional deepfakes that would flash up on his feed.
From BBC • Feb. 27, 2026
Morning show viewing is habitual and a change in the host chair could lead King’s fans to abandon the program.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 27, 2026
Do they not hear me hollering over the fence at my sons every day in the habitual, maternal accents of a native-born fishwife?
From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver
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.
