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Is it grammatically and lexically correct to call a person with a particular habit "a habit holder" or "a habit carrier" for short?

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  • It's grammatical but it's not at all natural.
    – Jason Bassford
    Commented Nov 8, 2018 at 21:03
  • Technically, yes.
    – keparoo
    Commented Nov 8, 2018 at 21:11
  • Could you please suggest a more natural wording to me?
    – Alexey Platonov
    Commented Nov 8, 2018 at 21:17
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    Are you talking about people who have any habit (as opposed to people with no habits at all), or people who have one specific habit? There's no real term for the former, since everyone has habits, but for the latter there are a variety of options depending on the exact habit. What kind of context would this term be used in?
    – Alan T.
    Commented Nov 8, 2018 at 23:41
  • A habitual (enter the habit).
    – user3169
    Commented Nov 9, 2018 at 4:32

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Wow, its actually hard to come up with something to describe a person with "any" habit.

I don't know what you are trying to convey by 'habit' here. A habit of smoking, taking drugs, etc? A habit of interrupting others while they are speaking?

Well, you can give these a try:

  • addict (might be a bit extreme but may work for a habit of smoking, doing drugs, watching stuff, etc)
  • fanatic (according to Collins: If you say that someone is a fanatic, you mean that they are very enthusiastic about a particular activity, sport, or way of life.)

  • devotee (google: a person who is very interested in and enthusiastic about someone or something.)

  • enthusiast (google: a person who is highly interested in a particular activity or subject)

  • proclivity (google: a tendency to choose or do something regularly; an inclination or predisposition toward a particular thing.)

  • inveterate (google: having a particular habit, activity, or interest that is long-established and unlikely to change. "he was an inveterate gambler")

  • congenital (google: (of a person) having a particular trait from birth or by firmly established habit. "a congenital liar")

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  • Thank you. But I'm asking about any person with a paticular (not any) habit. It may be smoking or, for instance, talking to yourself out loud. What can I say instead of "people with a habit of talking to themselves out loud" if I want to avoid repeating the full name of the habit? Anyway, thank you for your help!
    – Alexey Platonov
    Commented Nov 10, 2018 at 15:20
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    @AlexeyPlatonov soliloquist/soliloquize/soliloquy, introspection/introspective/introspect. I think these come close, but are not exact.
    – AIQ
    Commented Nov 10, 2018 at 17:27
  • Thanks. As I can see, there is no natural-sounding universal substitution like "a habit holder/carrier" which fits any case.
    – Alexey Platonov
    Commented Nov 10, 2018 at 20:02

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