a. | 1. | Pertaining to, or serving to constitute, the character; showing the character, or distinctive qualities or traits, of a person or thing; peculiar; distinctive. |
n. | 1. | A distinguishing trait, quality, or property; an element of character; that which characterized. |
2. | (Math.) The integral part (whether positive or negative) of a logarithm. |
Noun | 1. | characteristic - a prominent aspect of something; "the map showed roads and other features"; "generosity is one of his best characteristics" Synonyms: feature |
2. | characteristic - a distinguishing quality | |
3. | characteristic - the integer part (positive or negative) of the representation of a logarithm; in the expression log 643 = 2.808 the characteristic is 2 | |
4. | characteristic - any measurable property of a device measured under closely specified conditions Synonyms: device characteristic | |
Adj. | 1. | characteristic - typical or distinctive; "heard my friend's characteristic laugh"; "red and gold are the characteristic colors of autumn"; "stripes characteristic of the zebra" Antonyms: uncharacteristic, uncharacteristic of - distinctive and not typical; "a book uncharacteristic of its author" |