habituate

verb

ha·​bit·​u·​ate hə-ˈbi-chə-ˌwāt 

ha-,

-chü-ˌāt

habituated; habituating

transitive verb

1

: to make used to something : accustom

2

: frequent sense 1

intransitive verb

1

: to cause habituation

2

: to undergo habituation

habituate to a stimulus

Synonyms

• affect
• frequent
• hang (at)
• haunt
• resort (to)
• visit

Examples of habituate in a Sentence

the sort of lounge lizard known to habituate bars and nightclubs

Recent Examples on the Web

Companies like Tencent have set a precedent by habituating vast segments of the population to daily AI interactions. —Vivian Toh, Forbes.com, 24 Apr. 2025

This habituated the regime to the give-and-take politics of winning support. —Sean Yom, Foreign Affairs, 7 Mar. 2016

The experiment was conducted in eight meters of open water at a research site in the Mediterranean Sea where the local wild fish are habituated to the presence of divers. —Grrlscientist, Forbes, 25 Feb. 2025

Human beings habituate to anything that stays the same or is patterned. —Matt Abrahams, TIME, 17 Feb. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Rhymes for habituate

• abbreviate
• accelerate
• accommodate
• accumulate
• acuminate
• adjudicate
• adulterate
• affiliate
• agglomerate
• agglutinate
• alleviate
• amalgamate

Kids Definition

habituate

verb

ha·​bit·​u·​ate hə-ˈbich-ə-ˌwāt 

ha-

habituated; habituating

: to make used to something

habituation

-ˌbich-ə-ˈwā-shən

noun

Medical Definition

habituate

verb

ha·​bit·​u·​ate hə-ˈbich-ə-ˌwāt, ha- 

habituated; habituating

transitive verb

: to cause habituation in

intransitive verb

1

: to cause habituation

marijuana may be habituating

2

: to undergo habituation

habituate to a stimulus