1. a word or phrase that describes or identifies something
2. a piece of stored information that identifies a file or data structure
Usage: computing

Examples

• The job posting used ‘dynamic’ as a descriptor for the ideal candidate.
• Color is an important descriptor when identifying birds.
• The database uses unique descriptors for each customer record.
• Physical descriptors help police identify suspects.
• The file descriptor points to the location of the data.
• Each product has several descriptors including size and material.