as in characteristics
something that sets apart an individual from others of the same kind
honesty is one of her defining traits
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Recent Examples of traits
More to Explore The researchers found that faces that were rated as more attractive were rated more highly across all positive traits—not just competence, but intelligence, responsibility, and other traits—and were rated lower on all negative traits.
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Ben Ambridge, JSTOR Daily, 15 May 2026
Nagatitan belonged to a subgroup of sauropods that possessed bones with lots of internal air sacs and thin walls, traits that lightened their skeletons.
—Reuters, NBC news, 15 May 2026
As environments become more complex and information-dense, Performance may not be fully explained by individual traits alone and can also reflect broader systemic factors.
—Nia Bowers, USA Today, 15 May 2026
Artists can be complicated, selfish people, and substance abuse exacerbates these traits for many of them.
—Luis Parrales, The Atlantic, 14 May 2026
The pair share some similar traits, even if Iroegbunam is much taller in stature and more mobile, while Gueye is slicker in possession.
—Patrick Boyland, New York Times, 13 May 2026
Those traits align with ball pressure, pace, and defensive disruption, all areas Fernández has emphasized.
—C.j. Holmes, New York Daily News, 13 May 2026
Those traits historically idolized as feminine frailties (or diagnosed as feminine neuroses) are here reenvisioned as sources of extraordinary talent.
—Caroline Lillian Schopp, Artforum, 13 May 2026
Scientists are turning to conservation genomics — sequencing DNA to identify organisms with traits suited to survive climate extremes.
—Annika Hammerschlag, Los Angeles Times, 12 May 2026
Ben Ambridge, JSTOR Daily, 15 May 2026
Nagatitan belonged to a subgroup of sauropods that possessed bones with lots of internal air sacs and thin walls, traits that lightened their skeletons.
—Reuters, NBC news, 15 May 2026
As environments become more complex and information-dense, Performance may not be fully explained by individual traits alone and can also reflect broader systemic factors.
—Nia Bowers, USA Today, 15 May 2026
Artists can be complicated, selfish people, and substance abuse exacerbates these traits for many of them.
—Luis Parrales, The Atlantic, 14 May 2026
The pair share some similar traits, even if Iroegbunam is much taller in stature and more mobile, while Gueye is slicker in possession.
—Patrick Boyland, New York Times, 13 May 2026
Those traits align with ball pressure, pace, and defensive disruption, all areas Fernández has emphasized.
—C.j. Holmes, New York Daily News, 13 May 2026
Those traits historically idolized as feminine frailties (or diagnosed as feminine neuroses) are here reenvisioned as sources of extraordinary talent.
—Caroline Lillian Schopp, Artforum, 13 May 2026
Scientists are turning to conservation genomics — sequencing DNA to identify organisms with traits suited to survive climate extremes.
—Annika Hammerschlag, Los Angeles Times, 12 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for traits
Noun
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Jean-Claude Manuguerra, who heads Pasteur's Environment and Infectious Risk unit, said the remaining variation appeared to reflect natural viral variation and did not seem to affect the characteristics of the virus detected among travelers.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
16 May 2026
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Flock Safety's license plate reader technology captures vehicle information, including license plates and vehicle characteristics such as make, model and color on the property.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
16 May 2026
Noun
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Benefits of Almonds for Heart Health While combining dark chocolate and almonds has a positive impact on heart health, each food provides distinct cardioprotective qualities that contribute to these benefits.—
Anna Giorgi,
Verywell Health,
14 May 2026
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The juries will hate its repetitive qualities, but the public will embrace its deep, profound, abiding grooviness.—
Glen Weldon,
NPR,
14 May 2026
Noun
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Both books feature protagonists who are out of their elements but also possess unique attributes that first get them into trouble before becoming their one slim hope to escape.—
John Warner,
Chicago Tribune,
16 May 2026
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That makes a lot of sense for Subaru buyers, who value those attributes.—
Kristin Shaw,
Forbes.com,
16 May 2026
Noun
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Food and drink The Alexandar Bar is one of the hotel’s stand-out features.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
16 May 2026
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Its drafting features combine deterministic drafting with AI to enable complex and accurate drafting at scale.—
AllBusiness,
Forbes.com,
16 May 2026
Noun
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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
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This post was corrected on 21 January 2021 to clarify attributions.—
IEEE Spectrum,
IEEE Spectrum,
12 Jan. 2021
Cite this Entry
“Traits.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/traits. Accessed 18 May. 2026.
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