also: an ink impression of the lines upon the fingertip taken for the purpose of identification
2
: something that identifies: such as
a
: a trait, trace, or characteristic revealing origin or responsibility
b
: analytical evidence (such as a spectrogram) that characterizes an object or substance
especially: the chromatogram or electrophoretogram obtained by cleaving a protein by enzymatic action and subjecting the resulting collection of peptides to two-dimensional chromatography or electrophoresis
c
: the base-pair pattern in an individual's DNA obtained by DNA fingerprinting
Detectives found his fingerprints all over the gun.
Everyone has a unique fingerprint.
Recent Examples on the WebPolice had lifted his fingerprint from the window of the green sedan.—Christopher Goffard, Los Angeles Times, 29 May 2024 At the bottom of the escutcheon is a round panel with a biometric fingerprint reader.—PCMAG, 20 May 2024 This Dell laptop will support up to 32GB of memory, up to 1TB of M.2 2230 SSD storage, and a bunch of ports: two USB4 Type-C, one USB-A 3.2 Gen 1, microSD, audio jack, Windows Hello webcam, plus an optional fingerprint reader and optional external uSIM card tray for 5G connectivity.—Joanna Nelius, The Verge, 20 May 2024 Brady was identified by her fingerprints, the coroner's office said.—Max Filby, USA TODAY, 8 May 2024 See all Example Sentences for fingerprint
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'fingerprint.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
especially: an ink impression of the lines on the fingertip taken for purpose of identification
2
: analytical evidence (as a spectrogram) that characterizes an object or substance
especially: the chromatogram or electrophoretogram obtained by cleaving a protein by enzymatic action and subjecting the resulting collection of peptides to two-dimensional chromatography or electrophoresis compare dna fingerprinting
fingerprint
2 of 2transitive verb
: to analyze (as spectrographically or chromatographically) in order to determine uniquely the identifying characteristics, origin, or constitution of
each protein was fingerprinted
fingerprintingnoun
Legal Definition
fingerprint
noun
fin·ger·print
: the impression of a fingertip on any surface
also: an ink impression of the lines upon the fingertip taken for the purpose of identification (as during the booking procedure following an arrest) see also dna fingerprinting
Share