characteristic

Typical of a particular person, thing, or group.

• He gave a characteristic smile.
• This strong smell is characteristic of the plant.
• She answered with her characteristic patience.

How to use it: be characteristic of someone/something (That gentle humour is characteristic of her writing.)

Similar words: typical, distinctive

Opposites: uncharacteristic

Common phrases: characteristic of something, characteristic smile, characteristic feature

A quality or feature that is typical of a person, thing, or group.

• Patience is her best characteristic.
• The two plants share several characteristics.
• What are the main characteristics of this style?

How to use it: a characteristic of someone/something (Long ears are a characteristic of these rabbits.)

Similar words: feature, quality, trait

Common phrases: main characteristic, physical characteristic, characteristic of something

A number for a mathematical system: the fewest ones adding to zero, or zero if no such number exists.

• This field has characteristic zero.
• A finite field has prime characteristic.
• We studied rings of characteristic two.

How to use it: the characteristic of a field/ring (The characteristic of this field is five.)

Common phrases: characteristic zero, positive characteristic, characteristic of something