What's the difference between
and
Enter two words to compare and contrast their definitions, origins, and synonyms to better understand how those words are related.

Characteristic vs Earmark - What's the difference?

characteristic | earmark | Related terms |

Characteristic is a related term of earmark.


As nouns the difference between characteristic and earmark

is that characteristic is a distinguishable feature of a person or thing while earmark is a mark or deformation of the ear of an animal, intended to indicate ownership.

As an adjective characteristic

is being a distinguishing feature of a person or thing.

As a verb earmark is

to mark (as of sheep) by slitting the ear.

characteristic

Adjective

(en adjective)
  • Being a distinguishing feature of a person or thing.
  • * , chapter=12
  • , title= The Mirror and the Lamp , passage=All this was extraordinarily distasteful to Churchill. It was ugly, gross. Never before had he felt such repulsion when the vicar displayed his characteristic bluntness or coarseness of speech. In the present connexion […] such talk had been distressingly out of place.}}

    Synonyms

    * distinctive * exclusive * idiosyncratic * indicative * representative * signature * specific * typical

    Antonyms

    * uncharacteristic * untypical

    Derived terms

    * characteristic function * characteristicness

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • a distinguishable feature of a person or thing
  • (mathematics) the integer part of a logarithm
  • (nautical) the distinguishing features of a navigational light on a lighthouse etc by which it can be identified (colour, pattern of flashes etc)
  • (algebra, field theory) The minimum number of times that the unit of a field must be added unto itself in order to yield that field's zero, or, if that minimum natural number does not exist, then (the integer) zero.
  • A field's characteristic, if non-zero, must be a prime number.

    Synonyms

    * attribute * idiosyncrasy * mannerism * quality * tendency * trademark * trait * See also

    Derived terms

    * defining characteristic

    See also

    * mantissa

    earmark

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • To mark (as of sheep) by slitting the ear.
  • (by extension) To specify or set aside for a particular purpose.
  • You can donate to the organization as a whole, or you can earmark your contribution for a particular project.

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • A mark or deformation of the ear of an animal, intended to indicate ownership.
  • (US, politics) The designation of specific projects in appropriations of funding for general programs.
  • A mark for identification; a distinguishing mark.
  • * Wharton
  • Money is said to have no earmark .
  • * Burrow
  • A set of intellectual ideas have earmarks upon them, no tokens of a particular proprietor.

    Coordinate terms

    * (US politics) phonemark

    References

    * http://m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?earmark

    See also

    * expenditure * porkbarrel