habitat

noun

hab·​i·​tat ˈha-bə-ˌtat 

1

a

: the place or environment where a plant or animal naturally or normally lives and grows

b

: the typical place of residence of a person or a group

the arctic habitat of the Inuit

c

: a housing for a controlled physical environment in which people can live under surrounding inhospitable conditions (as under the sea)

2

: the place where something is commonly found

… has its natural habitat in university, in government, or in industrial laboratories.

—B. B. Watson

Synonyms of habitat

• home
• territory
• range

Examples of habitat in a Sentence

a forest in California is set aside to preserve the unique brushy, rugged habitat required by nesting California condors

Recent Examples on the Web

Money went to fund everything from harbors to habitat projects and a $250,000 farm-animal rescue. —Barnini Chakraborty, The Washington Examiner, 27 Nov. 2025

The natural habitat for these kinds of production values is home viewing, where the ripe dialogue can do the heavy lifting and the low-rent CGI explosions don’t have to stand up to big-screen scrutiny. —Catherine Bray, Variety, 26 Nov. 2025

Another would change the considerations for designating critical habitats for a species' survival. —Kinsey Crowley, USA TODAY, 25 Nov. 2025

Gramma was born in her native habitat and was estimated to be about 141 years old, zoo officials said. —Jaimie Ding, Fortune, 25 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Latin, it inhabits, from habitare

First Known Use

1796, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for habitat

• acrobat
• autocrat
• automat
• bundesrat
• bureaucrat
• butterfat
• caveat
• chemostat
• copycat
• cryostat
• democrat
• diplomat

Kids Definition

habitat

noun

hab·​i·​tat ˈhab-ə-ˌtat 

: the place or type of place where a plant or animal naturally or normally lives or grows

Medical Definition

habitat

noun

hab·​i·​tat ˈhab-ə-ˌtat 

1

: the place or environment where a plant or animal naturally occurs

the human pubic region is the natural habitat of the crab louse

2

: a housing for a controlled physical environment in which people can live surrounded by inhospitable conditions (as under the sea)