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
Relevance
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
The motion to disqualify Robinson, at this point an allegation, touches upon one of the defining characteristics of the Supreme Court — that discussions among judges when deliberating over decisions are confidential.
—
Edmund H. Mahony, Hartford Courant, 7 Mar. 2026
Every building has distinguishing characteristics.
—Allen Buchanan, Oc Register, 7 Mar. 2026
Many of the characteristics that made the stocks so attractive, like profit growth, remain intact.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 6 Mar. 2026
With not a lot of airtime to transition her protagonist from reasonable to out of touch with reality, Jonas relegated much of her character’s contemplative qualities to the asides and exaggerated her more base characteristics by adding in some reckless behavior.
—Elaina Patton, IndieWire, 6 Mar. 2026
Ultralight with Long-Lasting, Rechargeable Battery These two characteristics—low weight and long-lasting battery—are what make this budget headlamp so popular with thru-hikers.
—Maggie Slepian, Outside, 6 Mar. 2026
In these cases, scientists think the extreme characteristics of the black holes involved in these mergers are the result of prior collisions, providing evidence of merger chains that explain how some black holes grow to masses billions of times that of the sun.
—Robert Lea, Space.com, 6 Mar. 2026
And each category has different characteristics, so part of the process is to consider how an individual pick fits into its style overall.
—Jonah Flicker, Robb Report, 6 Mar. 2026
There is no single cause of suicide; however, there are a number of characteristics that increase a person’s risk.
—Sam Manzella, Flow Space, 5 Mar. 2026
Edmund H. Mahony, Hartford Courant, 7 Mar. 2026
Every building has distinguishing characteristics.
—Allen Buchanan, Oc Register, 7 Mar. 2026
Many of the characteristics that made the stocks so attractive, like profit growth, remain intact.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 6 Mar. 2026
With not a lot of airtime to transition her protagonist from reasonable to out of touch with reality, Jonas relegated much of her character’s contemplative qualities to the asides and exaggerated her more base characteristics by adding in some reckless behavior.
—Elaina Patton, IndieWire, 6 Mar. 2026
Ultralight with Long-Lasting, Rechargeable Battery These two characteristics—low weight and long-lasting battery—are what make this budget headlamp so popular with thru-hikers.
—Maggie Slepian, Outside, 6 Mar. 2026
In these cases, scientists think the extreme characteristics of the black holes involved in these mergers are the result of prior collisions, providing evidence of merger chains that explain how some black holes grow to masses billions of times that of the sun.
—Robert Lea, Space.com, 6 Mar. 2026
And each category has different characteristics, so part of the process is to consider how an individual pick fits into its style overall.
—Jonah Flicker, Robb Report, 6 Mar. 2026
There is no single cause of suicide; however, there are a number of characteristics that increase a person’s risk.
—Sam Manzella, Flow Space, 5 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for characteristics
Noun
-
Below, designers share how to make a staircase look timeless and design-forward—plus the qualities that can make a staircase look quickly dated.—
Sarah Lyon,
The Spruce,
3 Mar. 2026
-
Many of the qualities required to be a phenomenal investor are present in AI, which can absorb endless data, recognize historical patterns, and operate entirely free of human greed, fear, or fads.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
3 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The competing hypotheses, which seek to identify common traits between Little Foot and any of these species, highlight why the fossil continues to be such a rich resource of information that could contain clues to human evolution.—
Ashley Strickland,
CNN Money,
7 Mar. 2026
-
This late in the draft, the Colts — like pretty much every team — are swinging on traits.—
James Boyd,
New York Times,
6 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Luckily for investigators, the plant has some appropriately spooky attributes.—
Andrew Paul,
Popular Science,
5 Mar. 2026
-
Individual results may vary depending on patient-specific attributes and other factors.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
4 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
These Rains cargo pants are a genius way to stay dry in style on a wet, chilly day, with a waterproof exterior, plus useful features like a comfortable drawstring waist and large rain-safe pockets.—
Alexandra Pereira,
Travel + Leisure,
8 Mar. 2026
-
Perhaps Little Foot’s lineage was more closely related to East African hominins, while South African hominins evolved distinct facial features later on, the authors wrote in the study.—
Ashley Strickland,
CNN Money,
7 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Political discussions on social media are often dominated by competing attributions of more and more insidious motives to people on the other side.—
Mark Schroeder,
The Conversation,
20 Feb. 2026
-
This post was corrected on 21 January 2021 to clarify attributions.—
IEEE Spectrum,
IEEE Spectrum,
12 Jan. 2021
Noun
-
The restaurants were selected by members of the Courier Journal newsroom based on various criteria, including taste, texture, cheese and topping to chip (or tot) ratio, creativity, flavor, and more.—
Amanda Hancock,
Louisville Courier Journal,
6 Mar. 2026
-
The city and Alameda County keep that responsibility, and are still developing criteria.—
Ara Rosenthal,
Mercury News,
6 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Characteristics.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/characteristics. Accessed 9 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
