fingerprint
/ˈfɪŋɡɚˌpɹɪnt/ noun, verb
Forms fingerprints fingerprinting fingerprinted finger-print
- noun The natural pattern of ridges on the tips of human fingers, unique to each individual.
- noun The pattern left on a surface where an uncovered fingertip has touched, especially as used to identify the person who touched the surface.
- noun (by extension) A unique combination of features that serves as an identification of something. “acoustic fingerprint”
- noun (cryptography) A unique identification for a public key in asymmetric cryptography.
- noun (figurative) A trace that gives evidence of someone's involvement.
- verb (transitive) To take somebody's fingerprints. “The jail staff fingerprints its inmates routinely”
- verb (transitive) To identify something uniquely by a combination of measurements.
Synonyms
Etymology
From finger + print.
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 — from the Wiktionary entry “fingerprint”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details