Standard Lemma guide

usual

adj · noun · 5 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.

  • UK: /ˈjuː.ʒʊəl/
  • US: /ˈju.ʒuəl/
  • US: /ˈju.ʒ(w)əl/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: Y UW1 ZH AH0 W AH0 L Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
  • CMU ARPABET 2: Y UW1 ZH UW0 AH0 L Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Most commonly occurring; typical.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • The preference of a boy to a girl is a usual occurrence in some parts of China.
  • It is becoming more usual these days to rear children as bilingual.
  • We saw as many as usual.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: ordinary, plain, regular, simple, standard, typical, wonted, average, basic, bog-standard, common, common as bums, common as dirt, common as muck, common as pig tracks, dime a dozen, everyday, frequent, general, habitual, nonrare, par for the course, pedestrian, quotidian, routinary, routine, ten a penny, two a penny, usual, workaday, medial, commonplace, common-and-garden, common-or-garden, congruent, consistent, conventional, customary, expected, garden variety, improminent, mundane, natural, normal, par, plain vanilla, run-of-the-mill, standard issue, unexceptional, unremarkable, unstrange, vulgar, wakeaday

Antonyms: abnormal, atypical, unusual

2

noun

Meaning 2

The typical state of something, or something that is typical.

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

A specific good or service (e.g. a drink) that someone typically orders.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: colloquial, countable

Examples

  • I'll just have the usual.
  • Two usuals, please.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

adjective

Meaning 4

occurring or encountered or experienced or observed frequently or in accordance with regular practice or procedure

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • grew the usual vegetables
  • the usual summer heat
  • came at the usual time
  • the child's usual bedtime

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: unusual

5

adjective satellite

Meaning 5

commonly encountered

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • a common (or familiar) complaint
  • the usual greeting

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: common

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From Middle English usual, from Old French usuel, from Latin ūsuālis (“for use, fit for use, also of common use, customary, common, ordinary, usual”), from ūsus (“use, habit, custom”), from the past participle stem of ūtī (“to use”), possibly ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h3eyt- (“to take along, fetch”). Displaced native Old English ġewunelīċ.

Across languages

Translations

75 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Afrikaans: alledaags — most commonly occurring
  • Afrikaans: gewoon — most commonly occurring
  • Arabic: عَادِيّ (ʕādiyy) — most commonly occurring
  • Armenian: սովորական (sovorakan) — most commonly occurring
  • Asturian: usual — most commonly occurring
  • Azerbaijani: adi — most commonly occurring
  • Basque: ohiko — most commonly occurring
  • Basque: ohizko — most commonly occurring
  • Belarusian: звыча́йны (zvyčájny) — most commonly occurring
  • Bulgarian: обичаен (običaen) — most commonly occurring
  • Bulgarian: обикновен (obiknoven) — most commonly occurring
  • Catalan: usual — most commonly occurring
  • Chinese Mandarin: 通常 (tōngcháng) — most commonly occurring
  • Czech: obvyklý — most commonly occurring
  • Danish: admindelig — most commonly occurring
  • Danish: sædvanlig — most commonly occurring
  • Dutch: gewoon — most commonly occurring
  • Dutch: alledaags — most commonly occurring
  • Esperanto: kutima — most commonly occurring
  • Estonian: tavaline — most commonly occurring
  • Finnish: tavallinen — most commonly occurring
  • French: habituel — most commonly occurring
  • French: habituelle — most commonly occurring
  • Galician: usual — most commonly occurring
  • Georgian: ჩვეულებრივი (čveulebrivi) — most commonly occurring
  • German: gewöhnlich — most commonly occurring
  • German: üblich — most commonly occurring
  • Hanunoo: adok — most commonly occurring
  • Hungarian: szokásos — most commonly occurring
  • Hungarian: rendesen — most commonly occurring
  • Icelandic: venjulegur — most commonly occurring
  • Ido: kustumala — most commonly occurring
  • Irish: iondúil — most commonly occurring
  • Italian: solito — most commonly occurring
  • Italian: usuale — most commonly occurring
  • Italian: consueto — most commonly occurring
  • Italian: abituale — most commonly occurring
  • Japanese: 通常 (tsūjō) — most commonly occurring
  • Japanese: いつもの (itsumo no) — most commonly occurring
  • Korean: 보통의 (botong'ui) — most commonly occurring
  • Latin: solitus — most commonly occurring
  • Latin: usualis — most commonly occurring
  • Latin: ūsitātus — most commonly occurring
  • Latvian: parasts — most commonly occurring
  • Livonian: irdzi — most commonly occurring
  • Macedonian: вообичаен (voobičaen) — most commonly occurring
  • Macedonian: обичен (običen) — most commonly occurring
  • Marathi: नेहमीचे (nehmīce) — most commonly occurring
  • Norwegian Bokmål: vanlig — most commonly occurring
  • Norwegian Bokmål: sedvanlig — most commonly occurring
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: sedvanleg — most commonly occurring
  • Occitan: usual — most commonly occurring
  • Old English: ġewunelīċ — most commonly occurring
  • Pohnpeian: unsek — most commonly occurring
  • Polish: zwykły — most commonly occurring
  • Portuguese: usual — most commonly occurring
  • Romanian: uzual — most commonly occurring
  • Romanian: obișnuit — most commonly occurring
  • Russian: обыкнове́нный (obyknovénnyj) — most commonly occurring
  • Russian: обы́чный (obýčnyj) — most commonly occurring
  • Serbo-Croatian: уобѝча̄јен — most commonly occurring
  • Serbo-Croatian: uobìčājen — most commonly occurring
  • Slovak: obvyklý — most commonly occurring
  • Slovene: običajen — most commonly occurring
  • Spanish: usual — most commonly occurring
  • Spanish: habitual — most commonly occurring
  • Spanish: consabido — most commonly occurring
  • Swahili: kawaida — most commonly occurring
  • Swedish: vanlig — most commonly occurring
  • Thai: ธรรมดา (tam-má-daa) — most commonly occurring
  • Thai: เช่นเคย (chêen-kəəi) — most commonly occurring
  • Thai: สามัญ (sǎa-man) — most commonly occurring
  • Turkish: olağan — most commonly occurring
  • Ukrainian: звича́йний (zvyčájnyj) — most commonly occurring
  • Vietnamese: bình thường — most commonly occurring