Identifying
Part of speech: verb
Definition: To establish the identity of someone or something.
Example sentence: By its birth, and for all time, Christianity is pledged to the Cross and dominated by the sign of the Cross. It cannot remain its own self except by identifying itself ever more intensely with the essence of the Cross.
Characteristic
Part of speech: adjective
Definition: being a distinguishing feature of a person or thing
Part of speech: noun
Definition: a distinguishable feature of a person or thingthe integer part of a logarithmthe distinguishing features of a navigational light on a lighthouse etc by which it can be identified (colour, pattern of flashes etc)
Example sentence: To the European, it is a characteristic of the American culture that, again and again, one is commanded and ordered to 'be happy.' But happiness cannot be pursued; it must ensue. One must have a reason to 'be happy.'