Source: The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Fingerprint \Fin"ger*print\, n. [Finger + print.]
1. an impression of the pattern of ridges on the skin of the
last joint of a person's finger, left on a surface after a
person has touched the surface.
Note: Fingerprints left by persons who have committed crimes
are considered as reliable physical evidence linking an
individual with a crime, because each person's
fingerprints are distinctively different from those of
others, allowing identification of a person with high
confidence.
[PJC]
2. a fingerprint[1] made intentionally in ink on a paper form
for the purpose of identification of the individual.
[PJC]
3. any distinctive pattern of characteristics or properties
of an object which can serve to identify that object; as,
the distinctive fingerprint of eugenol in the mass
spectrum allowed easy recognition of its presence in the
sample.
[PJC]
4. a smudge made by a (dirty) finger. [WordNet sense 3]
Syn: fingermark.
[WordNet 1.5]
Source: The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
fingerprint \fin"ger*print\ v. t.
to take an impression of the fingerprints of (a person); as,
to fingerprint applicants for a gun permit.
[WordNet 1.5 +PJC]
fingerprint
n 1: biometric identification from a print made by an impression
of the ridges in the skin of a finger; often used as
evidence in criminal investigations
2: a generic term for any identifying characteristic; "that tax
bill had the senator's fingerprints all over it"
3: a smudge made by a (dirty) finger [syn: fingermark]
v : take an impression of a person's fingerprints
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