1. The inherent complex of attributes that determines a person's moral and ethical actions and reactions
   "education has for its object the formation of character";
   - fiber [US], fibre [Brit, Cdn]
    
2. A characteristic property that defines the apparent individual nature of something
   "the radical character of our demands"; "The sharp lineaments of his face revealed his stern character";
   - quality, lineament
    
3. An imaginary person represented in a work of fiction (play, film or story)
   "she is the main character in the novel";
   - fictional character, fictitious character
    
4. An actor's portrayal of someone in a play
   "she played the character of Desdemona";
   - role, theatrical role, part, persona
    
5. A person of a specified kind (usually with many eccentricities)
   "a real character"; "a strange character";
   - eccentric, type, case
    
6. Good repute
   "he is a man of character"
    
7. A written symbol that is used to represent speech
   "the Greek alphabet has 24 characters";
   - graph, grapheme, graphic symbol
    
8. (genetics) an attribute (structural or functional) that is determined by a gene or group of genes
   "Eye colour is a genetic character inherited from one's parents"
    
9. A formal recommendation by a former employer to a potential future employer describing the person's qualifications and dependability
   "requests for character references are all too often answered evasively";
   - reference, character reference

1. Engrave or inscribe characters on
   "The jeweller charactered the ring with the couple's initials"

Derived forms: charactering, charactered, characters

Type of: adult, attribute, characterization, dimension, enactment, engrave, good word, grave [archaic], grownup, imaginary being, imaginary creature, inscribe, personation, portrayal, printed symbol, property, recommendation, reputation, repute, scratch, testimonial, trait, written symbol

Part of: personality

Encyclopedia: Character, Sacramental