What does accustomed mean?
Accustomed is an English adjective describing something made familiar through repeated experience. It has two main uses: when applied to people, typically followed by "to," it indicates that someone is habituated to a situation, activity, or condition — for example, someone accustomed to cold climates no longer notices the chill. When applied to things, places, or times, it means customary or usual, as in "her accustomed seat by the fire." The adjective derives from the related verb "accustom," meaning to make familiar by practice, and ultimately traces back through Old French to the Latin consuetudinem, meaning custom or habit. Accustomed carries a neutral register, appearing naturally in both formal writing and everyday speech. It pairs frequently with verbs like become, grow, and get, reflecting its core sense of gradual adaptation. Its antonym, unaccustomed, is equally established and often appears in polite formulas such as "unaccustomed as I am." Understanding accustomed helps express not just familiarity, but the process of settling into a routine until it feels second nature.
Habitual, customary, or familiar through frequent repetition; (of a person) having become used to something, especially when followed by 'to.'
"He was accustomed to the quiet of the countryside after years in the city."
Typically followed by 'to' + noun or gerund when describing a person's habituation.
Made familiar or used to something through habituation, functioning adjectivally.
"Having been accustomed to early mornings since childhood, she rose without an alarm."
Strictly speaking this is the past participle of 'accustom' used adjectivally; dictionaries list 'accustomed' primarily as an adjective.
"Accustomed" and "costume" are cousins — both trace back to the same Latin word for custom or habit.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of accustomed
Accustomed derives from the verb accustom, which entered Middle English from Anglo-Norman and Old French acostumer, itself built on costume, from Latin consuetudinem, meaning custom or usage, rooted in the verb suescere, to become used to. This same Latin root gave rise to English words such as custom, customer, and costume, all sharing the underlying sense of habit or regular practice. Accustomed developed its adjectival sense of habituated or customary over the medieval period and remains standard across English-speaking regions today.
Related word forms
How accustomed is actually used
Predominantly used attributively or predicatively with the preposition 'to' ('accustomed to'). The verb form is 'to accustom'. Considered slightly formal but widely used in both British and American English. The negative form 'unaccustomed' is common, especially in phrases like 'unaccustomed as I am to public speaking.'
Easily confused with accustomed
Accustomed describes habituation or familiarity, while customized describes something modified to fit individual requirements.