/ˈjuːsɪd͡ʒ/, /ˈjuːzɪd͡ʒ/
OriginFrom Middle English usage, from Anglo-Norman and Old French usage.
- countable, uncountableA custom or established practice.
“[S]everal young people sung sacred music in the churchyard at night, which it seems is an usage here.”
“Mrs. Wickam, agreeably to the usage of some ladies in her condition, pursued […] the subject, without any compunction.”
- uncountableCustom, tradition.
- countable, uncountableThe act of using something; use, employment.
“Demand continues to increase, and in 2023-24 recorded usage was higher than pre-COVID, with 384,000 passenger journeys in total (of which 247,000 were at the town location). At the other end of the br”
- countable, uncountablePrevailing language style: how words are used among a populace.
“In descriptive fact, word senses are established by usage.”
- countable, uncountableChoice of language style (made by a speaker or writer).
“usage prescriptions”
“In prescriptive ideal, writers will optimize their usage.”
- archaic, countable, uncountableAction towards someone; treatment, especially in negative sense.
“Whose sharp provokement them incenst so sore, / That both were bent t'avenge his usage base […]”
“Satisfy a child by a constant course of your care and kindness, that you perfectly love him, and he may by degrees be accustom'd to bear very painful and rough usage from you, without flinching or com”
Formsusages(plural) · usuage(alternative, obsolete)