behavior
See also: behaviour
English
editAlternative forms
editEtymology
editFrom Middle English behavoure, behaver, from behaven (modern behave), with the ending apparently in imitation of havour (see 'havior), a corruption of Old French aveir and/or avoir (“a having”), ultimately from Latin habēre. Compare Scots havings (“behavior”), from have (“to behave”). Displaced Old English ġebǣru.
Pronunciation
edit- (Western) IPA(key): /bɪˈheɪvjəʴ/, Rhymes: -eɪvjə(ɹ)
- (Indic) IPA(key): /bɪˈheːvɪjəʳ/
- Hyphenation: be‧ha‧vior
Noun
editbehavior (usually uncountable, plural behaviors) (American spelling)
- (uncountable) Human conduct relative to social norms.
- 2014 September 23, A teacher, “Choosing a primary school: a teacher's guide for parents”, in The Guardian:
- Teachers will probably be on their best behaviour for your visit – but don't be upset if they don't even notice you; they've got enough going on.
- (countable, uncountable) The way a living creature behaves or acts generally.
- (uncountable, informal) A state of probation about one's conduct.
- He was on his best behavior when her family visited.
- (countable, uncountable, biology, psychology) Observable response produced by an organism.
- (uncountable) The way a device or system operates.
Synonyms
editDerived terms
edit- behavioral
- behavioralism
- behavioralist
- behavioral science
- behavioreme
- behaviorism
- behaviorist
- behavioristic
- behaviormetric
- behaviormetrics
- behavior pattern
- behaviorwise
- body-focused repetitive behavior disorder
- dialectical behavior therapy
- eigenbehavior
- health behavior
- human behavior
- ideal-seeking behavior
- macrobehavior
- misbehavior
- neurobehavior
- photobehavior
- routine response behavior
Related terms
editCollocations
editCollocations
- Adjectives often applied to "behavior": human, animal, physical, chemical, mechanical, electrical, organizational, corporate, social, collective, parental, interpersonal, sexual, criminal, appropriate, inappropriate, correct, incorrect, right, wrong, good, bad, acceptable, unacceptable, poor, ethical, unethical, moral, immoral, responsible, irresponsible, normal, odd, deviant, abnormal, violent, abusive, aggressive, offensive, defensive, rude, stupid, undesirable, verbal, nonverbal, learned, professional, unprofessional, adaptive, compulsive, questionable, assertive, disgusting, self-destructive, surreal.
Translations
editway an animal or human behaves or acts
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way matter or systems behave
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in biology and psychology
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- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked
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Further reading
edit- "behavior" in Raymond Williams, Keywords (revised), 1983, Fontana Press, page 43.
- “behavior”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
- William Dwight Whitney, Benjamin E[li] Smith, editors (1911), “behavior”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., →OCLC.
Categories:
- English terms derived from Proto-Indo-European
- English terms derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *keh₂p-
- English terms inherited from Middle English
- English terms derived from Middle English
- English terms derived from Old French
- English terms derived from Latin
- English 3-syllable words
- English terms with IPA pronunciation
- Rhymes:English/eɪvjə(ɹ)
- Rhymes:English/eɪvjə(ɹ)/3 syllables
- English terms with audio pronunciation
- English 4-syllable words
- English lemmas
- English nouns
- English uncountable nouns
- English countable nouns
- American English forms
- English terms with quotations
- English informal terms
- English terms with usage examples
- en:Biology
- en:Psychology
- English terms prefixed with be-