characteristic vs habit

characteristic

noun
  • A distinguishing feature of a person or thing. 

  • For a given field or ring, a natural number that is either the smallest positive number n such that n instances of the multiplicative identity (1) summed together yield the additive identity (0) or, if no such number exists, the number 0. 

  • The integer part of a logarithm. 

  • The distinguishing features of a navigational light on a lighthouse etc by which it can be identified (colour, pattern of flashes etc.). 

adj
  • Being a distinguishing feature of a person or thing. 

habit

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

  • A long piece of clothing worn by monks and nuns. 

  • An action performed on a regular basis. 

  • An action performed repeatedly and automatically, usually without awareness. 

  • An addiction. 

verb
  • To clothe. 

How often have the words characteristic and habit occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )