custom
[ kuhs-tuh m ]
/ ˈkʌs təm /
noun
adjective
made specially for individual customers: custom shoes.
dealing in things so made, or doing work to order: a custom tailor.
Origin of custom
1150–1200; Middle English
custume < Anglo-French; Old French
costume < Vulgar Latin
*co(n)s(uē)tūmin-, replacing Latin
consuētūdin- (stem of
consuētūdō), equivalent to
consuēt(us) accustomed, past participle of
consuēscere (
con-
con- +
suē- (akin to
suus one's own) +
-tus past participle suffix) +
-ūdin- noun suffix; cf.
costume
synonym study for custom
1, 2.
Custom,
habit,
practice mean an established way of doing things.
Custom, applied to a community or to an individual, implies a more or less permanent continuance of a social usage:
It is the custom to give gifts at Christmas time.
Habit, applied particularly to an individual, implies such repetition of the same action as to develop a natural, spontaneous, or rooted tendency or inclination to perform it:
to make a habit of reading the newspapers.
Practice applies to a set of fixed habits or an ordered procedure in conducting activities:
It is his practice to verify all statements.
Words nearby custom
custodes,
custodial,
custodian,
custodianship,
custody,
custom,
custom house,
custom-build,
custom-built,
custom-made,
custom-make
Example sentences from the Web for customs
British Dictionary definitions for customs (1 of 2)
customs
/ (ˈkʌstəmz) /
noun (functioning as singular or plural)
duty on imports or exports
the government department responsible for the collection of these duties
the part of a port, airport, frontier station, etc, where baggage and freight are examined for dutiable goods and contraband
the procedure for examining baggage and freight, paying duty, etc
(as modifier)
customs officer
British Dictionary definitions for customs (2 of 2)
custom
/ (ˈkʌstəm) /
noun
adjective
made to the specifications of an individual customer (often in the combinations custom-built, custom-made)
specializing in goods so made
See also
customs
Word Origin for custom
C12: from Old French
costume, from Latin
consuētūdō, from
consuēscere to grow accustomed to, from
suēscere to be used to