wont

[ wawnt, wohnt, wuhnt ]

/ wɔnt, woʊnt, wʌnt /

Archaic or Literary.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR wont ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

accustomed; used (usually followed by an infinitive): He was wont to rise at dawn.

noun

custom; habit; practice: It was her wont to walk three miles before breakfast.

verb (used with object), wont, wont or wont·ed, wont·ing.

to accustom (a person), as to a thing: That summer wonted me to a lifetime of early rising.

to render (a thing) customary or usual (usually used passively).

verb (used without object), wont, wont or wont·ed, wont·ing.

to be wont.

RELATED WORDS

given, accustomed, inclined, used

Nearby words

wonga, wonga-wonga, wonk, wonky, wonna, wont, wonted, woo, woo-hoo, woo-woo, wood

Origin of wont

1300–50; (adj.) Middle English wont, woned, Old English gewunod, past participle of gewunian to be used to (see won²); cognate with German gewöhnt; (v.) Middle English, back formation from wonted or wont (past participle); (noun) apparently from conflation of wont (past participle) with obsolete wone wish, in certain stereotyped phrases

SYNONYMS FOR wont

1 habituated, wonted.

2 use.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR wont ON THESAURUS.COM

ANTONYMS FOR wont

1 unaccustomed.

SEE MORE ANTONYMS FOR wont ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

wont·less, adjective

Can be confused

want wontwon't wont

Definition for wont (2 of 2)

won't

[ wohnt, wuhnt ]

/ woʊnt, wʌnt /

contraction of will not: He won't see you now.

Can be confused

won't wont

Usage note

See contraction.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for wont

Forgive my candor, though such is my wont, but much like that moose on a spit, Bernie is dead.
How the Lame Democrats Blew It|Goldie Taylor|November 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The U.K. tabloids, as is their wont, have branded her “shameless,” “sordid,” and “the scourge of society.”
The X Factor of Sex Invades Britain: Rebecca More’s ‘Sex Tour’ Enrages UK Politicians|Marlow Stern|October 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It has been, as contestants on TV talent shows are wont to say, a “journey.”
Angelina Jolie's Wedding Dress Was Crazy Brilliant|Tim Teeman|September 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Allen responded with his own op-ed in the Times, and the media, as is their wont, proceeded to pick sides.
Woody Allen on ‘Magic in the Moonlight,’ the Crisis in Gaza, and Those Allegations|Marlow Stern|July 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST

As celebrities on the movie promotion circuit are wont to do, Cameron Diaz is hawking her latest cause celebre.
Waxing: Damned if You Do and Damned if You Don’t: How Pubic Hair Became Political|Emily Shire|April 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It seemed to Polly that the days fairly crept by, instead of galloping past as they had been wont to do in the last three years.
Polly's Southern Cruise|Lillian Elizabeth Roy
Thus James, more petulantly than was his wont, from his chair below the green-shaded lamp.
The Whirligig of Time|Wayland Wells Williams
I wont describe to you the progress of our love, or the wrath of my Uncle Edward when he discovered that it still continued.
The Paris Sketch Book of Mr. M. A. Titmarsh: The Irish Sketch Book|William Makepeace Thackeray
By this standard legislative bodies have been wont to judge the exigency of this mighty question.
History of Woman Suffrage, Volume III (of III)|Various
Maybe they all send and wont receive or all receive and wont send.
The Radio Detectives in the Jungle|A. Hyatt Verrill

British Dictionary definitions for wont (1 of 2)

wont

/ (wəʊnt) /

adjective

(postpositive) accustomed (to doing something)he was wont to come early

noun

a manner or action habitually employed by or associated with someone (often in the phrases as is my wont, as is his wont, etc)

verb

(when tr, usually passive) to become or cause to become accustomed

Word Origin for wont

Old English gewunod, past participle of wunian to be accustomed to; related to Old High German wunēn (German wohnen), Old Norse una to be satisfied; see wean 1, wish, winsome

British Dictionary definitions for wont (2 of 2)

won't

/ (wəʊnt) /

contraction of

will not

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012