wonted

Synonym Chooser

How is the word wonted distinct from other similar adjectives?

Some common synonyms of wonted are accustomed, customary, habitual, and usual. While all these words mean "familiar through frequent or regular repetition," wonted stresses habituation but usually applies to what is favored, sought, or purposefully cultivated.

his wonted determination

How is accustomed related to other words for wonted?

Accustomed is less emphatic than wonted or habitual in suggesting fixed habit or invariable custom.

accepted the compliment with her accustomed modesty

In what contexts can customary take the place of wonted?

The meanings of customary and wonted largely overlap; however, customary applies to what accords with the practices, conventions, or usages of an individual or community.

the customary waiting period before the application is approved

Where would habitual be a reasonable alternative to wonted?

While in some cases nearly identical to wonted, habitual suggests a practice settled or established by much repetition.

a habitual morning routine

When could usual be used to replace wonted?

Although the words usual and wonted have much in common, usual stresses the absence of strangeness or unexpectedness.

my usual order for lunch

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of wonted His wonted improvisations and other departures from the script did not suggest his usual ease. Matthew Walther, TheWeek, 13 Mar. 2020 Egypt chose a different path, preferring to return to the wonted pain of dysfunctional autocracy and avoid civil war (although civil war seems even still to be creeping up on the Egyptians out of Sinai and Libya). Kenneth M. Pollack, New York Times, 25 Apr. 2016
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wonted
Adjective
  • While the set seems a bit on the chintzy side, scenic designer Beowulf Boritt does his usual stellar work, assisted immensely by Ken Billington’s full-of-pizzazz lighting design.
    Greg Evans, Deadline, 10 Apr. 2025
  • That’s not to say there isn’t more cleanup than usual between showings.
    Pamela McClintock, HollywoodReporter, 10 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • Surgeons reduced the ribs from the front of the body (versus the lower back, as is customary) and conducted pulmonary tests on patients pre- and post-op.
    Jolene Edgar, Allure, 10 Apr. 2025
  • Review: In ‘Good Night, and Good Luck’ on Broadway, here’s George Clooney with an urgent bulletin When George Clooney walks out on stage as Edward R. Murrow, the distinguished American journalist, the chiseled Hollywood star gets the customary entrance applause.
    Chicago Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 4 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • During ordinary times, this accommodation would reflect an appropriate respect for the constitutional separation of powers.
    Ruth Marcus, New Yorker, 14 Apr. 2025
  • Inevitably, skipping ordinary procedural checks, the administration made at least one mistake in deporting Abrego Garcia, and probably many others.
    The Editors, National Review, 14 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • Until Black Panther’s record breaking $235 million opening, conventional industry wisdom held that films with predominantly Black casts typically underperform financially overseas.
    Chris Lee, Vulture, 18 Apr. 2025
  • At a computer convention, Trent (Fleck) expresses excitement over programs that Josh (Macer) has devised for keyboard, mimicking conventional instrumentation.
    Dennis Harvey, Variety, 17 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • For 2025, retail growth predictions of 3.6% or better are holding firm, and while NRF economists are expecting slower growth for the near term, the trade group is expecting for normal growth to return in time.
    Megan Poinski, Forbes.com, 9 Apr. 2025
  • Join 22 others in the comments View Comments The airline also expects its own employment level in 2025 to be down from 2024 levels, though executives said that would be done through normal attrition caused by retirement and other voluntary departures, and not any layoff of staff.
    Chris Isidore, CNN Money, 9 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • Direct trade models that are commonplace in the coffee industry are not so in the tea industry (albeit not unheard of), because of the way the majority of the latter operates through world market auctions and regional export/importers.
    Christopher Marquis, Forbes.com, 8 Apr. 2025
  • But for others, particularly younger Americans, this could be the season of life where receiving wedding invitations is commonplace, and the costs are adding up.
    Nerdwallet, Oc Register, 4 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • Romulus, Remus and Khaleesi are unlikely to exhibit behaviors typical of wild dire wolves due to being raised in captivity without a pack structure, says Adam Boyko, a geneticist at Cornell University who was not involved in the project, to the New York Times.
    Margherita Bassi, Smithsonian Magazine, 8 Apr. 2025
  • Overnight, temperatures will remain in the 50s, well above the 41 degrees typical for this date.
    Robert A. Cronkleton, Kansas City Star, 8 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • Chemical analyses in 2007 by teams including C. Kevin Boyce provided further support by revealing carbon isotope ratios characteristic of heterotrophic fungi.
    Scott Travers, Forbes.com, 7 Apr. 2025
  • Jay North, who starred as the young mischief maker with the characteristic blond cowlick on the 1959-63 CBS comedy Dennis the Menace, has died.
    Mike Barnes, HollywoodReporter, 6 Apr. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Wonted.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wonted. Accessed 21 Apr. 2025.

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