characteristic

[kar-ik-tuh-ris-tik]

adjective

1. Also characteristical. pertaining to, constituting, or indicating the character or peculiar quality of a person or thing; typical; distinctive.

   Red and gold are the characteristic colors of autumn.

   Synonyms: peculiar, special

noun

1. a distinguishing feature or quality.

   Generosity is his chief characteristic.

   Synonyms: trait, property, attribute

2. Mathematics.

   1. the integral part of a common logarithm.

   2. the exponent of 10 in a number expressed in scientific notation.

   3. the smallest positive integer n such that each element of a given ring added to itself n times results in 0.

characteristic

/ ˌkærɪktəˈrɪstɪk /

noun

1. a distinguishing quality, attribute, or trait

2. maths

   1. the integral part of a common logarithm, indicating the order of magnitude of the associated number Compare mantissa

      the characteristic of 2.4771 is 2

   2. another name for exponent, used esp in number representation in computing

adjective

1. indicative of a distinctive quality, etc; typical

characteristic

1. The part of a logarithm to the base 10 that is to the left of the decimal point. For example, if 2.749 is a logarithm, 2 is the characteristic.

2. Compare mantissa

Other Word Forms

• characteristically adverb
• noncharacteristic adjective
• noncharacteristically adverb
• quasi-characteristic adjective
• quasi-characteristically adverb
• uncharacteristic adjective
• uncharacteristically adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of characteristic¹

First recorded in 1655–65; from Greek charaktēristikós ( character, -istic )

Synonym Study

See feature.

Example Sentences

She added: "Making care experience a protected characteristic would ensure public bodies make policy with care-experienced people in mind."

From BBC

It is a spectrum, meaning it includes a wide range of traits or characteristics which vary from person to person.

From BBC

A percentage of babies born every day will manifest queer characteristics, and though countless strongmen have left fields of carnage in attempts to manage so-called bloodlines, nobody can override such DNA destiny.

From Salon

"The defendant should be no exception—particularly when his history and characteristics demonstrate years of abuse and violence."

From BBC

The run-up to the fight stressed the clashing characteristics of the fighters.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• aspect 
• attribute 
• component 
• essence 
• flavor 
• nature 
• peculiarity 
• personality 
• quality 
• style 
• symptom 
• temperament 
• tendency 
• tone 
• virtue