definierenden

Definierenden is the present participle form of the German verb definieren in a declined, attributive position. In standard usage it functions as an adjective or participial modifier and conveys that something serves to define or identify something else. In practice it appears most often in phrases describing essential or characteristic features, such as defining or defining-by-essence.

Grammatically, definierenden is declined like an adjective that originates from a participle. Its exact ending depends on gender, number, and case, and on the presence of articles or determiners. A common usage is in the plural with a definite article: die definierenden Merkmale (the defining characteristics). In singular constructions, forms such as das definierende Merkmal or die definierende Eigenschaft are typical, where the ending changes to match the noun phrase.

Usage and nuance: definierenden marks a contrast between features that merely exist and those that function as defining or identifying aspects of a concept, category, or object. It is common in academic, scientific, and technical writing, as well as in philosophical or analytical prose, to distinguish defining features from incidental or non-defining attributes. It can occur in attributive position before a noun or in predicative constructions where the participle functions as part of a compound description, e.g., Die Merkmale sind definierend.

See also: definieren, definierendes Merkmal, Merkmale, charakteristische Merkmale.