cardinal trait

noun Psychology.

a basic and dominant characteristic, as greed or ambition, that, according to a theory developed by psychologist Gordon Allport (1936), controls the behavior of many people.

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Nearby words

cardinal sin, cardinal spider, cardinal symptom, cardinal system, cardinal tetra, cardinal trait, cardinal veins, cardinal virtue, cardinal virtues, cardinal vowel, cardinal vowels

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019