Habit vs. Pattern — What's the Difference?

Can be developed or reinforced by triggers in the environment.

A repeated decorative design, as on textiles.

A behavior that is repeated regularly and tends to occur subconsciously.

In psychology, patterns of behavior can indicate certain mental health conditions.

Often pertains to personal health or efficiency, can be either good or bad.

Can denote regularities in behavior or occurrences over time.

Ingrained in one’s routine, sometimes difficult to change.

Often observable in nature or in systematic data.

Often used in a personal context to describe daily routines.

Used in various scientific and analytic fields to predict future trends.

A habit (or wont as a humorous and formal term) is a routine of behavior that is repeated regularly and tends to occur subconsciously.The American Journal of Psychology (1903) defined a "habit, from the standpoint of psychology, [as] a more or less fixed way of thinking, willing, or feeling acquired through previous repetition of a mental experience." Habitual behavior often goes unnoticed in persons exhibiting it, because a person does not need to engage in self-analysis when undertaking routine tasks. Habits are sometimes compulsory.

A pattern is a regularity in the world, in human-made design, or in abstract ideas. As such, the elements of a pattern repeat in a predictable manner.

A settled or regular tendency or practice, especially one that is hard to give up

A usually repeating artistic or decorative design

A long, loose garment worn by a member of a religious order

A natural or accidental arrangement or sequence

A person's health or constitution

A plan, diagram, or model to be followed in making things

Be dressed or clothed

A model or original used for imitation or as an archetype.

A recurrent, often unconscious pattern of behavior that is acquired through frequent repetition

A composite of traits or features characteristic of an individual or a group

An established disposition of the mind or character

Form and style in an artistic work or body of artistic works.

Customary manner or practice

Enough material to make a complete garment.

An addiction, especially to a narcotic drug.

A test pattern.

Characteristic appearance, form, or manner of growth, especially of a plant or crystal

The flight path of an aircraft about to land

A distinctive set of clothing or style of dressing, especially of a religious order.

(Football) A pass pattern.

A riding habit.

To make, mold, or design by following a pattern

(Archaic) Physical constitution.

To cover or ornament with a design or pattern.

To clothe; dress.

To make a pattern.

To clothe in a habit, especially a nun's habit.

Model, example.

An action performed on a regular basis.

Something from which a copy is made; a model or outline.

An action performed repeatedly and automatically, usually without awareness.

Someone or something seen as an example to be imitated; an exemplar.

A long piece of clothing worn by monks and nuns.

A copy.

A piece of clothing worn for a specific activity; a uniform.

A sample; of coins, an example which was struck but never minted.

(archaic) Outward appearance; attire; dress.

A representative example.

Form of growth or general appearance and structure of a variety or species of plant or crystal.

(US) The material needed to make a piece of clothing.

An addiction.

(textiles) The paper or cardboard template from which the parts of a garment are traced onto fabric prior to cutting out and assembling.

(transitive) To clothe.

A full-sized model around which a mould of sand is made, to receive the melted metal. It is usually made of wood and in several parts, so as to be removed from the mould without damage.

To inhabit.

(computing) A text string containing wildcards, used for matching.

The usual condition or state of a person or thing, either natural or acquired, regarded as something had, possessed, and firmly retained; as, a religious habit; his habit is morose; elms have a spreading habit; esp., physical temperament or constitution; as, a full habit of body.

A design pattern.

The general appearance and manner of life of a living organism.

Coherent or decorative arrangement.

Fixed or established custom; ordinary course of conduct; practice; usage; hence, prominently, the involuntary tendency or aptitude to perform certain actions which is acquired by their frequent repetition; as, habit is second nature; also, peculiar ways of acting; characteristic forms of behavior.

A design, motif or decoration, especially formed from regular repeated elements.

Outward appearance; attire; dress; hence, a garment; esp., a closely fitting garment or dress worn by ladies; as, a riding habit.

A naturally-occurring or random arrangement of shapes, colours etc. which have a regular or decorative effect.

The distinctive clothing worn commonly by nuns or monks; as, in the late 1900's many orders of nuns discarded their habits and began to dress as ordinary lay women.

A particular sequence of events, facts etc. which can be understood, used to predict the future, or seen to have a mathematical, geometric, statistical etc. relationship.

To inhabit.

(linguistics) An intelligible arrangement in a given area of language.

To dress; to clothe; to array.

A sequence of notes, percussion etc. in a tracker module, usable once or many times within the song.

To accustom; to habituate.

To apply a pattern.

An established custom;

To make or design (anything) by, from, or after, something that serves as a pattern; to copy; to model; to imitate.

A pattern of behavior acquired through frequent repetition;

To follow an example.

(religion) a distinctive attire (as the costume of a religious order)

To fit into a pattern.

Excessive use of drugs

(transitive) To serve as an example for.

Put a habit on

To observe an animal closely over time in order to discern its habitual movements and behaviours.

(MLE) To arrange, to organise, to fix.

Of or in accordance with a usual pattern, or type; model; ideal.

Anything proposed for imitation; an archetype; an exemplar; that which is to be, or is worthy to be, copied or imitated; as, a pattern of a machine.

A part showing the figure or quality of the whole; a specimen; a sample; an example; an instance.

Stuff sufficient for a garment; as, a dress pattern.

Figure or style of decoration; design; as, wall paper of a beautiful pattern.

Something made after a model; a copy.

Anything cut or formed to serve as a guide to cutting or forming objects; as, a dressmaker's pattern.

A full-sized model around which a mold of sand is made, to receive the melted metal. It is usually made of wood and in several parts, so as to be removed from the mold without injuring it.

A recognizable characteristic relationship or set of relationships between the members of any set of objects or actions, or the properties of the members; also, the set having a definable relationship between its members.

The recommended flight path for an airplane to follow as it approaches an airport for a landing. Same as landing pattern.

An image or diagram containing lines, usually horizontal, vertical, and diagonal, sometimes of varying widths, used to test the resolution of an optical instrument or the accuracy of reproduction of image copying or transmission equipment. Same as test pattern.

To make or design (anything) by, from, or after, something that serves as a pattern; to copy; to model; to imitate.

To serve as an example for; also, to parallel.

A perceptual structure;

A customary way of operation or behavior;

A decorative or artistic work;

Something regarded as a normative example;

A model considered worthy of imitation;

Something intended as a guide for making something else;

The path that is prescribed for an airplane that is preparing to land at an airport;

Graphical representation (in polar or cartesian coordinates) of the spatial distribution of radiation from an antenna as a function of angle

Plan or create according to a model or models

Form a pattern;

A habit is formed through the repeated performance of a behavior until it becomes automatic.

A habit is a regularly repeated behavior that becomes automatic.

A pattern is a recognizable repeated sequence, either in actions, designs, or events.

Yes, patterns can be predictive, especially in fields like meteorology, economics, or behavior analysis.

Yes, recognizing patterns can provide valuable insights into complex systems and help in making informed decisions.

Habits can directly impact personal health positively or negatively based on their nature.

In artificial intelligence, patterns are crucial for algorithms to learn and make predictions.

It is generally considered harder to change an existing habit than to form a new one due to the power of existing neural pathways.

Bad habits can be changed through awareness, setting specific goals, and persistence in modifying behaviors.

Habits significantly affect daily life by influencing behavior, productivity, and overall well-being.

In mathematics, patterns could include sequences, symmetries, and fractals among others.

Yes, recognizing behavioral patterns can lead to personal insights and development opportunities.

Not all patterns are intentional; some occur naturally or spontaneously.

A habit is an automatic behavior, while a routine is a set of habits performed at specific times.

Natural patterns often follow laws of nature, whereas human-made patterns might be designed with specific purposes in mind.