behavior and behaviour are homophones: they are pronounced identically and spelled differently, which is why they are so often swapped. behavior means “manner of acting or controlling yourself”. behaviour means “the action or reaction of something (as a machine or substance) under specified circumstances”.
/bɪˈheɪvjɚ/
1.n.manner of acting or controlling yourself
2.n.the action or reaction of something (as a machine or substance) under specified circumstances
“the behavior of small particles can be studied in experiments”
3.n.(behavioral attributes) the way a person behaves toward other people
| behavior | behaviour | |
|---|---|---|
| Pronunciation | /bɪˈheɪvjɚ/ | /bɪˈheɪvjɚ/ |
| Said | bi-HAY-vyur | bi-HAY-vyur |
| Syllables | 3 | 3 |
| Letters | 8 | 9 |
| Parts of speech | noun | noun |
| Senses | 4 | 4 |
| How common | Common | Common |
| Synonyms | behaviour, conduct, doings | behavior |
Full entry for behavior · Full entry for behaviour · More comparisons
/bɪˈheɪvjɚ/
1.n.the action or reaction of something (as a machine or substance) under specified circumstances
“the behavior of small particles can be studied in experiments”
2.n.(behavioral attributes) the way a person behaves toward other people
3.n.(psychology) the aggregate of the responses or reactions or movements made by an organism in any situation