habitué

American  

[huh-bich-oo-ey, -bich-oo-ey, a-bee-twey] / həˈbɪtʃ uˌeɪ, -ˌbɪtʃ uˈeɪ, a biˈtweɪ /

noun

habitués plural

1. a frequent or habitual visitor to a place.

   a habitué of art galleries.

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habitué British  

/ həˈbɪtjʊˌeɪ /

noun

1. a frequent visitor to a place

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• habitués
  plural

Etymology

Origin of habitué

First recorded in 1810–20; from French, noun use of masculine past participle of habituer, from Late Latin habituāre; see habituate

Explanation

A habitué is a frequent and well-known patron of a particular place. If you walk into a restaurant, and the entire staff waves and says your name, you are likely a habitué. The English habitué is spelled and pronounced the same as the 200-year-old French word (the accent is optional), which means "accustomed." The most famous habitué in American sitcom history is probably Norm Peterson of Cheers, whose arrival was always greeted by a chorus of patrons shouting "Norm!" Other, less French-sounding words for this famous fellow might be fixture or regular.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

habitué habitués

The older painter, though remaining a salon habitué, lent a Morisot painting he owned to the show.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 25, 2025

The longtime habitué of Griffith Park was a symbol of a ferality lurking under L.A.’s sheen.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 1, 2023

In the early days of our friendship we would meet at the Café de Flore, where Karl was a habitué.

From New York Times ● Apr. 27, 2023

While researching, Peters also stumbled across the green darner dragonfly: Washington’s state insect; a habitué of lakes, ponds and springs; and a rich symbol.

From Seattle Times ● Dec. 9, 2022

Under a well-cultivated whisker uniting to the moustache upon his lips—in short the facial tonsure which distinguishes the habitué of the Horse Guards.

From The Child Wife by Reid, Mayne

Business-class habitués might not care much but, when you’re splurging, it all starts with the welcome in my book.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 18, 2026

The couple became habitués, as did the Kissingers, Nixons, Trumps and Truman Capote, as well as diplomats from the nearby United Nations missions and generations of families from the surrounding tony East Side neighborhood.

From New York Times ● Aug. 4, 2022

As narrated by Damon Runyon in his signature “Guys and Dolls” style, they describe the tiffs and rivalries among the habitués of a celestial saloon.

From Washington Post ● Oct. 18, 2021

The counterculture movement has deep roots from the granola-crunchy vibe of San Francisco’s Haight-Ashbury to the chilled-out Abbot Kinney habitués of Venice of old.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 7, 2019

The table d'hôte is composed of a circle of habitués, varied by occasional visitors, who in time become, perhaps, members of the circle.

From Beethoven: A Memoir (2nd Ed.) by Graeme, Elliott