English Dictionary
Definition of “custom”
custom (ˈkʌstəm
)
Definitions
noun
- a usual or habitual practice; typical mode of behaviour
- the long-established habits or traditions of a society collectively; convention ⇒
custom dictates good manners
- a practice which by long-established usage has come to have the force of law
- such practices collectively (esp in the phrase custom and practice)
- habitual patronage, esp of a shop or business
- the customers of a shop or business collectively
- (in feudal Europe) a tribute paid by a vassal to his lord
adjective
- made to the specifications of an individual customer (often in the combinations custom-built, custom-made)
- specializing in goods so made
Word Origin
C12: from Old French costume, from Latin consuētūdō, from consuēscere to grow accustomed to, from suēscere to be used to
Synonyms
View thesaurus entry
=
tradition,
practice,
convention,
ritual,
form,
policy,
rule,
style,
fashion,
usage,
formality,
etiquette,
observance,
praxis,
unwritten law,
kaupapa,
Quotations
"Custom reconciles us to everything"
Edmund Burke"a customMore honoured in the breach than the observance"
William Shakespeare
Translations
- British English:
custom
A custom is an activity, a way of behaving, or an event which is usual or traditional in a particular society or in particular circumstances....an ancient custom.ˈkʌstəm NOUN ...an ancient custom.
- Spanish:
costumbre
nf
- French:
coutume
nf
- German:
Brauch
nm Bräuche
- Chinese: 习惯 n
- Arabic: عُرْف n
- Portuguese: costume nm
- Russian: обычай nm
- Croatian: običaj nm
- Czech: zvyklost nf
- Danish: skik nutr
- Dutch: gewoonte nf
- Finnish: tapa n
- Greek: έθιμο nnt
- Italian: tradizione nf
- Japanese: 風習 n
- Korean: 관습 n
- Norwegian: sedvane nm
- Polish: zwyczaj nm
- Brazilian Portuguese: costume nm
- European Spanish:
costumbre
nf
- Swedish: sed nutr
- Thai: ศุลกากร n
- Turkish: adet n
- Vietnamese: phong tục n
Usage examples
Please note that your letterhead and invoices should not only be signed but stamped as well as is the custom in West Africa.
Robert Wilson, BLOOD IS DIRT (2002)But immigrants don't simply retain attachments to their homeland and culture out of habit and custom.
Spiked (2003)Trailer or mobile homes are small, inexpensive boxes often separated by zoning and custom into their own areas.
Globe and Mail (2003)Some, he said, seemed to tell parents what they wanted to hear to keep their custom.
Belfast Telegraph (2004)The nearest contemporary equivalent is the afternoon sleep of the siesta, a custom that still survives in some countries.
Paul Martin, COUNTING SHEEP: The Science and Pleasures of Sleep and Dreams (2002)
