HABIT Synonyms: 187 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How does the noun 'habit' differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of habit are custom , practice , usage , and wont . While all these words mean "a way of acting fixed through repetition," habit implies a doing unconsciously and often compulsively. // had a habit of tapping his fingers

Q: When is it sensible to use 'custom' instead of 'habit'?

Although the words custom and habit have much in common, custom applies to a practice or usage so steadily associated with an individual or group as to have almost the force of unwritten law. // the custom of wearing black at funerals

Q: In what contexts can 'practice' take the place of 'habit'?

In some situations, the words practice and habit are roughly equivalent. However, practice suggests an act or method followed with regularity and usually through choice. // our practice is to honor all major credit cards

Q: When could 'usage' be used to replace 'habit'?

While the synonyms usage and habit are close in meaning, usage suggests a customary action so generally followed that it has become a social norm. // western-style dress is now common usage in international business

Q: When can 'wont' be used instead of 'habit'?

The synonyms wont and habit are sometimes interchangeable, but wont usually applies to a habitual manner, method, or practice of an individual or group. // as was her wont , she slept until noon

habit 1 of 2

noun

ˈha-bət

Definition of habit

as in ritual

a usual manner of behaving or doing it was his habit to rise early

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

as in addiction

a physiological need for certain drugs a cocaine habit of long standing

Synonyms & Similar Words

as in physique

the type of body that a person has an imposing man of vigorous habit

Synonyms & Similar Words

as in clothes

archaic covering for the human body dressed in the habit of a knight from the golden age of chivalry

Synonyms & Similar Words

habit

2 of 2

verb

as in to clothe

to outfit with clothes and especially fine or special clothes his exclusive clothing store had habited the town's upper crust for as long as anyone could remember

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How does the noun habit differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of habit are custom, practice, usage, and wont. While all these words mean "a way of acting fixed through repetition," habit implies a doing unconsciously and often compulsively.

had a habit of tapping his fingers

When is it sensible to use custom instead of habit?

Although the words custom and habit have much in common, custom applies to a practice or usage so steadily associated with an individual or group as to have almost the force of unwritten law.

the custom of wearing black at funerals

In what contexts can practice take the place of habit?

In some situations, the words practice and habit are roughly equivalent. However, practice suggests an act or method followed with regularity and usually through choice.

our practice is to honor all major credit cards

When could usage be used to replace habit?

While the synonyms usage and habit are close in meaning, usage suggests a customary action so generally followed that it has become a social norm.

western-style dress is now common usage in international business

When can wont be used instead of habit?

The synonyms wont and habit are sometimes interchangeable, but wont usually applies to a habitual manner, method, or practice of an individual or group.

as was her wont, she slept until noon

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of habit

Noun

Christiansen said tackling debt starts with looking closely at spending habits and becoming more intentional about money. — ABC News, 16 Oct. 2026 Prioritize healthy habits like eating a nutritional diet, regular exercise, quality sleep and lowering stress. — Helen Carefoot, Flow Space, 16 Oct. 2026 Build a simple monthly habit of naming the one assumption that could hurt cash flow if it is proved wrong. — Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 16 Oct. 2026 The feature brings together details about your shopping habits and preferences. — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 16 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for habit

Recent Examples of Synonyms for habit

Noun

Other amenities include a Wellbeing by Auberge program, complete with thermal rituals, skin therapies, and more luxe treatments rooted in a holistic approach to health and longevity.

— Nicole Hoey, Robb Report, 15 Oct. 2026
Estes said the aqueduct's water was used for both practical and religious purposes, including cleaning up after sacrifices and performing purification rituals at the Temple Mount.

— Andrea Margolis, FOXNews.com, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of ritual

Noun

Matt Passmore, Emily Rose, Gabriel Nagy and Hudson Macready star in the film, which tells the true story of a family confronting addiction and loss while finding its way back to one another.

— Zac Ntim, Deadline, 16 Oct. 2026
Haidt argues that social media disrupts kids’ social and neurological development, contributing to rising anxiety and depression through sleep loss, fragmented attention, addiction, loneliness, social comparison and perfectionism.

— Ari Lightman, The Conversation, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of addiction

Noun

Decodo, a web data company, tracked price changes in 2025 across products ranging from electronics to clothing and home improvement supplies.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 19 Oct. 2026
Travis Kelce reminded Chiefs fans on Sunday that one of his other day jobs is ambassador — and model — for preppy clothing brand Tommy Hilfiger.

— Lisa Gutierrez, Kansas City Star, 18 Oct. 2026

Definition of clothing

Verb

However, other analysts have expressed concerns about assuming that take-or-pay legal structures are iron-clad and about equating backlogs with revenue.

— Tobias Burns, CNBC, 16 Oct. 2026
Video of the incident obtained by CBS News showed a group of around 20 masked men clad in black or gray clothes descending a hill from the area of an Israeli settlement outpost into an olive grove near the Palestinian village of Abu Falah.

— Dov Lieber, CBS News, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of clothe

Noun

Larsson has missed practice time and the final three preseason games because of his illness, and Smith missed the entire preseason after straining his calf during training camp.

— Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 17 Oct. 2026
Russia has also publicly acknowledged the drone attack on a refinery and broadcast images on state media, breaking with its usual practice in order to play up the incident.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 17 Oct. 2026

Definition of practice

Noun

The wide-leg pants keep things relaxed, and the ruched waist on the knit top adds shape and makes the whole look feel more polished than a standard sweatshirt set.

— Chaise Sanders, Travel + Leisure, 18 Oct. 2026
Part of its purpose, from the beginning, was not only to deliver new facts but to interpret ragged events for a nervous audience of relatively prosperous, largely white viewers who shared Wallace’s concern about the shape and tenor of the future.

— Vinson Cunningham, New Yorker, 18 Oct. 2026

Definition of shape

Noun

Before the main event kicked off, however, the glitzy Academy Gala red carpet saw all of these A-listers bring out their finest evening attire for the night.

— Christian Allaire, Vogue, 18 Oct. 2026
Kendall Jenner and Hunter Schafer, in Valentino and Prada, respectively, wore two of the evening’s most compelling arguments for black and white evening attire.

— José Criales-Unzueta, Vanity Fair, 18 Oct. 2026

Definition of attire

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“Habit.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/habit. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of habit

noun

verb

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