Standard Lemma guide

usage

noun · 9 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /ˈjuːsɪd͡ʒ/
  • Received-Pronunciation: /ˈjuːzɪd͡ʒ/
  • Canada, General-American: /ˈjusɪd͡ʒ/
  • Canada, General-American: /ˈjuzɪd͡ʒ/
  • California, Southern: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • Australian: /ˈjʉːsɪd͡ʒ/
  • Australian: /ˈjʉːzɪd͡ʒ/
  • CMU ARPABET: Y UW1 S AH0 JH Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
  • CMU ARPABET 2: Y UW1 S IH0 JH Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

Habit, practice.

A custom or established practice.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

Habit, practice.

Custom, tradition.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

Utilization.

The act of using something; use, employment.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

Utilization.

The established custom of using language; the ways and contexts in which spoken and written words are used, especially by a certain group of people or in a certain region.

Prevailing language style: how words are used among a populace.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Examples

  • In descriptive fact, word senses are established by usage.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

Utilization.

The established custom of using language; the ways and contexts in which spoken and written words are used, especially by a certain group of people or in a certain region.

Choice of language style (made by a speaker or writer).

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Examples

  • usage prescriptions
  • In prescriptive ideal, writers will optimize their usage.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

noun

Meaning 6

Utilization.

Action towards someone; treatment, especially in negative sense.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: archaic, countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

7

noun

Meaning 7

accepted or habitual practice

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: custom, usance

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: practice, pattern, survival

Narrower terms: Americanism, Anglicism, Britishism, consuetude, couvade, Germanism, habit, use, hijab, ritual, rite

8

noun

Meaning 8

the act of using

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • he warned against the use of narcotic drugs
  • skilled in the utilization of computers

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: use, utilization, utilisation, employment, exercise

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: activity

Narrower terms: practice, play, misuse, abuse, exploitation, development, recycling, application, practical application

9

noun

Meaning 9

the customary manner in which a language (or a form of a language) is spoken or written

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • English usage
  • a usage borrowed from French

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: language, linguistic communication

History

Etymology

Etymology tree Anglo-Norman usagebor. Middle English usage English usage From Middle English usage, from Anglo-Norman and Old French usage. By surface analysis, use + -age.

Across languages

Translations

114 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: اِسْتِخْدَام (istiḵdām) — act of using something; use
  • Assamese: ব্যৱহাৰ (byowohar) — act of using something; use
  • Bulgarian: употреба (upotreba) — act of using something; use
  • Catalan: ús — act of using something; use
  • Chinese Mandarin: 用法 (yòngfǎ) — act of using something; use
  • Dutch: gebruik — act of using something; use
  • Esperanto: uzado — act of using something; use
  • Finnish: käyttö — act of using something; use
  • Finnish: käsittely — act of using something; use
  • French: usage — act of using something; use
  • Galician: emprego — act of using something; use
  • Galician: uso — act of using something; use
  • Georgian: გამოყენება (gamoq̇eneba) — act of using something; use
  • Georgian: სარგებლობა (sargebloba) — act of using something; use
  • Georgian: მოხმარება (moxmareba) — act of using something; use
  • German: Verwendung — act of using something; use
  • German: Benutzung — act of using something; use
  • German: Anwendung — act of using something; use
  • German: Nutzung — act of using something; use
  • Greek: χρήση (chrísi) — act of using something; use
  • Ancient Greek: χρῆσις (khrêsis) — act of using something; use
  • Hindi: लौकिकता (laukiktā) — act of using something; use
  • Hungarian: használat — act of using something; use
  • Indonesian: pakai — act of using something; use
  • Indonesian: pemakaian — act of using something; use
  • Italian: utilizzo — act of using something; use
  • Italian: utilizzi — act of using something; use
  • Japanese: 使い方 (tsukaikata) — act of using something; use
  • Kazakh: қолданыс (qoldanys) — act of using something; use
  • Latin: ūsus — act of using something; use
  • Latvian: lietojums — act of using something; use
  • Latvian: lietojumi — act of using something; use
  • Malayalam: വിനിയോഗം (viniyōgaṁ) — act of using something; use
  • Malayalam: ഉപയോഗം (upayōgaṁ) — act of using something; use
  • Māori: whakamahinga — act of using something; use
  • Norwegian: bruksområde — act of using something; use
  • Persian: کاربرد (kârbord) — act of using something; use
  • Polish: użycie — act of using something; use
  • Portuguese: uso — act of using something; use
  • Russian: испо́льзование (ispólʹzovanije) — act of using something; use
  • Russian: примене́ние (primenénije) — act of using something; use
  • Russian: обраще́ние (obraščénije) — act of using something; use
  • Russian: употребле́ние (upotreblénije) — act of using something; use
  • Sanskrit: विनियोगः (viniyogaḥ) — act of using something; use
  • Serbo-Croatian: upotreba — act of using something; use
  • Spanish: uso — act of using something; use
  • Sylheti: ꠛꠦꠛꠀꠞ (beboar) — act of using something; use
  • Sylheti: ꠁꠍ꠆ꠔꠦꠝꠣꠟ (iśtemal) — act of using something; use
  • Telugu: వాడుక (vāḍuka) — act of using something; use
  • Ukrainian: ужи́ток (užýtok) — act of using something; use
  • Ukrainian: вжи́ток (vžýtok) — act of using something; use
  • Ukrainian: використа́ння (vykorystánnja) — act of using something; use
  • Ukrainian: кори́стува́ння (korýstuvánnja) — act of using something; use
  • Bulgarian: обичай (običaj) — habit or accepted practice
  • Catalan: ús — habit or accepted practice
  • Chinese Mandarin: 習慣 /习惯 (xíguàn) — habit or accepted practice
  • Finnish: käytäntö — habit or accepted practice
  • French: coutume — habit or accepted practice
  • French: usage — habit or accepted practice
  • Galician: uso — habit or accepted practice
  • Galician: usanza — habit or accepted practice
  • Galician: hábito — habit or accepted practice
  • German: Brauch — habit or accepted practice
  • Hungarian: szokás — habit or accepted practice
  • Hungarian: gyakorlat — habit or accepted practice
  • Italian: uso — habit or accepted practice
  • Italian: usi — habit or accepted practice
  • Japanese: 使い方 (tsukaikata) — habit or accepted practice
  • Japanese: 習慣 (shūkan) — habit or accepted practice
  • Malayalam: ഉപയോഗം (upayōgaṁ) — habit or accepted practice
  • Norwegian: anvendelse — habit or accepted practice
  • Polish: zwyczaj — habit or accepted practice
  • Polish: praktyka — habit or accepted practice
  • Polish: uzus — habit or accepted practice
  • Portuguese: emprego — habit or accepted practice
  • Portuguese: uso — habit or accepted practice
  • Russian: обы́чай (obýčaj) — habit or accepted practice
  • Russian: обыкнове́ние (obyknovénije) — habit or accepted practice
  • Russian: привы́чка (privýčka) — habit or accepted practice
  • Russian: тради́ция (tradícija) — habit or accepted practice
  • Spanish: usanza — habit or accepted practice
  • Spanish: usaje — habit or accepted practice
  • Telugu: వాడుక (vāḍuka) — habit or accepted practice
  • Ukrainian: зви́чай (zvýčaj) — habit or accepted practice
  • Bulgarian: употреба (upotreba) — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Czech: jazyková praxe — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Esperanto: lingvaĵo — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Finnish: kielenkäyttö — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Finnish: puhetapa — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • French: usage — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Galician: emprego — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Galician: uso — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • German: Gebrauch — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Hungarian: szóhasználat — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Indonesian: praktik berbahasa — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Japanese: 使い方 (tsukaikata) — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Japanese: 用法 (yōhō) — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Malayalam: ഉപയോഗരീതി (upayōgarīti) — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Norwegian: bruk — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Polish: praktyka językowa — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Polish: uzus językowy — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Portuguese: emprego — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Russian: употребле́ние (upotreblénije) — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Russian: языковая практика (jazykovaja praktika) — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Russian: словоупотребление (slovoupotreblenije) — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Russian: у́зус (úzus) — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Serbo-Croatian: jezična uporaba — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Serbo-Croatian: jezična praksa — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Serbo-Croatian: jezična izvedba — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Slovak: jazyková prax — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Telugu: వాడుక (vāḍuka) — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Ukrainian: слововжива́ння (slovovžyvánnja) — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Ukrainian: слововжи́ток (slovovžýtok) — the way words are spoken or written in a community
  • Ukrainian: у́зус (úzus) — the way words are spoken or written in a community
Real reading context

usage in complete knowledge articles