characteristic

/ˌker-ik-tə-ˈri-stik/

noun

  1. a distinguishing trait, quality, or property

  2. the integral part of a common logarithm

  3. the smallest positive integer n which for an operation in a ring or field yields 0 when any element is used n times with the operation

the characteristics of this breed of dog

adjective

  1. revealing, distinguishing, or typical of an individual character

a poetic style characteristic of the epic

characteristic individual peculiar distinctive mean indicating a special quality or identity. characteristic applies to something that distinguishes or identifies a person or thing or class. individual stresses qualities that distinguish one from all other members of the same kind or class.

noun

  1. an equation in which the characteristic polynomial of a matrix is set equal to 0