Noun

characteristics

1. Plural form of characteristic.

Characteristic (from the Greek word for a property or attribute (= trait) of an entity) may refer to:

In physics and engineering:

• Any characteristic curve that shows the relationship between certain input and output parameters, e.g.
• An I-V or current-voltage characteristic is the current in a circuit as a function of the applied voltage
• Receiver operating characteristic
• Light characteristic pattern of a lighted beacon, in navigation

In mathematics

• The characteristic of a ring R is a number that describes what happens to integers when interpreted in R
• A characteristic function usually means the indicator function of a subset, though the term has other meanings in specific domains
• The characteristic polynomial in linear algebra is a polynomial associated to a square matrix
• The Euler characteristic is a topological invariant
• A characteristic subgroup in group theory is a subgroup that is invariant under all automorphisms

In fiction:

• Another name for ability score in Dungeons & Dragons