Synonyms
Examples of trait in a Sentence
This dog breed has a number of desirable traits.
honesty is one of her defining traits
Recent Examples on the Web
McCarthy gives a great performance, playing up the press secretary’s more boorish traits as a gum-guzzling loudmouth that mangles words and twists facts like pretzels.
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Harrison Richlin, IndieWire, 11 Feb. 2025
This would have meant a high metabolism, leading Ostrom to compare Deinonychus to modern animals with similar traits, such as emus and ostriches.
—Danny Robb, JSTOR Daily, 8 Feb. 2025
Gut bacteria produce a wide variety of metabolites, and indoles have the remarkable ability to cross the blood-brain barrier — an essential trait for any substance that directly affects brain function.
—Jenny Lehmann, Discover Magazine, 7 Feb. 2025
Like so many inborn traits, the spiritual impulse for prayer can grow stronger, and just as easily grow weaker.
—Lynne Silva-Breen, Twin Cities, 7 Feb. 2025
See all Example Sentences for trait 
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Harrison Richlin, IndieWire, 11 Feb. 2025
This would have meant a high metabolism, leading Ostrom to compare Deinonychus to modern animals with similar traits, such as emus and ostriches.
—Danny Robb, JSTOR Daily, 8 Feb. 2025
Gut bacteria produce a wide variety of metabolites, and indoles have the remarkable ability to cross the blood-brain barrier — an essential trait for any substance that directly affects brain function.
—Jenny Lehmann, Discover Magazine, 7 Feb. 2025
Like so many inborn traits, the spiritual impulse for prayer can grow stronger, and just as easily grow weaker.
—Lynne Silva-Breen, Twin Cities, 7 Feb. 2025
See all Example Sentences for trait
Dictionary Entries Near trait
Cite this Entry
“Trait.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/trait. Accessed 14 Feb. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
trait
noun1
: a quality that sets one person or thing off from another : peculiarity sense 2
curiosity is one of her notable traits
2
: an inherited characteristic
dominant and recessive traits
Etymology
from early French trait "the act of pulling," from Latin tractus, past participle of trahere "to pull, drag" — related to trace entry 1, trace entry 3
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