a distinguishing quality

recommendation / passport - any quality or characteristic that gains a person a favorable reception or acceptance or admission
compatibility - capability of existing or performing in harmonious or congenial combination
incompatibility - the quality of being unable to exist or work in congenial combination
point / spot - an outstanding characteristic
point - a distinguishing or individuating characteristic
hallmark / trademark / earmark / stylemark - a distinctive characteristic or attribute
aspect - a characteristic to be considered
safeness - the quality of being safe
dangerousness - the quality of not being safe
curability / curableness - capability of being cured or healed
incurability / incurableness - incapability of being cured or healed
directness / straightness - trueness of course toward a goal
indirectness - having the characteristic of lacking a true course toward a goal
rurality / ruralism - a rural characteristic or trait
streak - a distinctive characteristic

    nature

    quality

any measurable property of a device measured under closely specified conditions

    property

a prominent aspect of something; "the map showed roads and other features"; "generosity is one of his best characteristics"

sex characteristic / sex character - those characteristics (both anatomical and psychological) that are strongly associated with one sex relative to the other
aspect / facet - a distinct feature or element in a problem
attraction / attractor / attracter / attractive feature / magnet - a characteristic that provides pleasure and attracts
badge - any feature that is regarded as a sign of status (a particular power or quality or rank)
centerpiece / centrepiece - the central or most important feature
contour - a feature (or the order or arrangement of features) of anything having a complex structure
excellence - something in which something or some one excels
external - outward features
peculiarity / distinctive feature / distinguishing characteristic - an odd or unusual characteristic
safety feature - feature of an artifact that is added to insure a user''s safety

    property     attribute     dimension

the integer part (positive or negative) of the representation of a logarithm; in the expression log 643 = 2.808 the characteristic is 2

    integer     whole number

typical or distinctive; "heard my friend''s characteristic laugh"; "red and gold are the characteristic colors of autumn"; "stripes characteristic of the zebra"

    typical

    diagnostic     symptomatic     symptomatic of(p)     distinctive     typical     distinguishing     distinctive     identifying(a)     peculiar(a)

    uncharacteristic     uncharacteristic of