usage

noun us·age \ˈyü-sij, -zij\

: the act of using something

: the way that something is used

: the amount of something that is used

Full Definition of USAGE

a : firmly established and generally accepted practice or procedure

b : a uniform certain reasonable lawful practice existing in a particular locality or occupation and binding persons entering into transactions chiefly on the basis of presumed familiarity

c : the way in which words and phrases are actually used (as in a particular form or sense) in a language community

a : the action, amount, or mode of using <a decreased usage of electricity>

b : manner of treating

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Origin of USAGE

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from us use

First Known Use: 14th century

Related to USAGE

Synonyms: application, employment, exercise, operation, play, use

Synonym Discussion of USAGE

habit, practice, usage, custom, wont mean a way of acting fixed through repetition. habit implies a doing unconsciously and often compulsively <had a habit of tapping his fingers>. practice suggests an act or method followed with regularity and usually through choice <our practice is to honor all major credit cards>. 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>. 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>. wont usually applies to an habitual manner, method, or practice of an individual or group <as was her wont, she slept until noon>.

USAGE Defined for Kids