characteristics

noun

plural of characteristic
as in qualities
something that sets apart an individual from others of the same kind the ability to fashion tools and other characteristics that distinguish human beings from other animals

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of characteristics Directly transferring the original walking policy failed because the second robot had different body proportions, joint configurations, and motor characteristics. — Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 28 Aug. 2026 According to the team, each of those characteristics plays out similarly in real fish of various sizes across different ecological niches. — Mack Degeurin, Popular Science, 27 Aug. 2026 And most simulants of lunar material are faithful in their geological characteristics, to simulate the lunar surface and its dust, rather than the precise chemistry within. — Eric Berger, ArsTechnica, 26 Aug. 2026 In contrast, biological markers – called biomarkers for short – are characteristics that can be objectively measured and used to evaluate a biological process, including how well someone is responding to a particular treatment. — Anand Kumar, The Conversation, 26 Aug. 2026 Wildlife officials strongly believe Kaydee is female based on her size and other characteristics. — Amanda Lee Myers, USA Today, 25 Aug. 2026 That means exploring different ways the county could grow and taking a closer look at the distinct characteristics and needs of individual communities. — Nicole Buss, Sacbee.com, 25 Aug. 2026 That’s a company that can scrape off personally identifying characteristics. — Miami Herald, 25 Aug. 2026 Its license plate readers capture plate numbers along with vehicle characteristics such as make, model and color, and some Flock systems can identify distinguishing features such as bumper stickers or aftermarket modifications. — Landon Mion, FOXNews.com, 21 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for characteristics
  1. qualities
  2. traits
  3. attributes
  4. features
  5. attributions
  6. criteria
Noun
  • Summary Personality traits often blur between desirable and undesirable, with positive qualities becoming negative in extreme.
    — Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2026
  • McGee joked with the crowd that their most similar qualities were distress around loud noises and mild anxiety.
    — Maddie Rhodes, USA Today, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of qualities
Noun
  • The article notes the overlap between emotional intelligence and psychopathy; while EQ is lauded, psychopathic traits can surprisingly predict career success due to charm and appearing calm under pressure.
    — Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2026
  • Craig was extremely productive at Harvard and has NFL-caliber traits with his size, mobility and throw power.
    — Steven Johnson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of traits
Noun
  • To the surprise of probably no one, these attributes carry over beautifully into the work of country songwriting.
    — Jayson Greene, Pitchfork, 25 Aug. 2026
  • However, these material attributes do not always reduce environmental impacts.
    — Erin Victor, The Conversation, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of attributes
Noun
  • Chinese engineers are widely seen as among the best in the world, making advanced efforts to incorporate mitigation features and surveillance.
    — Simone McCarthy, CNN Money, 29 Aug. 2026
  • Meta and YouTube lost in a social media addiction trial in Los Angeles earlier this year, which was brought by a plaintiff who claimed her mental health was damaged by addictive features like autoplay and infinite scrolling.
    — Sawdah Bhaimiya, CNBC, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of features
Noun
  • In two cases, the publishers added specific attributions, as had been required of Miller’s book.
    — Jessica Meszaros, Miami Herald, 21 Aug. 2026
  • The work has bounced between several attributions over the years before scholar Giuseppe Porzio identified it as a painting by Glielmo, giving bidders a fresh reason to take notice.
    — Daniel Cassady, ARTnews.com, 3 June 2026
Definition of attributions
Noun
  • Here are the stocks that met that criteria and were also up more than 5% on the week.
    — Tobias Burns, CNBC, 29 Aug. 2026
  • In an interview with USA TODAY, Flock CEO Langley declined to say what specific criteria meet Flock’s internal threshold for unusual activity.
    — Kenny Jacoby, USA Today, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of criteria

Browse Nearby Words

characteristic
characteristics
characterize
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Cite this Entry

“Characteristics.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/characteristics. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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