markedBy

Markedby is not a standalone technical term but a common English phrase formed from the verb marked and the preposition by. In ordinary use, marked by describes something that is distinguished, identified, or defined by a particular feature, attribute, or agent. It signals a characteristic or cause that sets something apart.

In grammar, marked by functions as a prepositional phrase. For example, in the sentence “The painting is marked by bold red strokes,” the phrase indicates the feature that identifies or characterizes the artwork. In journalism and everyday language, you might see “the event was marked by controversy” or “the region is marked by high rainfall,” where the phrase attributes a defining quality to the subject.

In computing and data modeling, markedBy often appears as a field name or key, especially in records that track moderation, curation, or user actions. Variants such as markedBy or marked_by are common in JSON, APIs, and codebases to record the identity (such as a username or user ID) of the person who marked, flagged, or approved an item. This use is orthogonal to the general English sense and is primarily a naming convention for provenance or responsibility.

In scientific and descriptive writing, marked by can describe observable features or patterns that distinguish a specimen, specimen, region, or phenomenon. For example, researchers might describe a species as “marked by distinctive markings,” where the phrase highlights diagnostic traits.

See also: mark, marking, distinguishing feature, provenance, data field naming conventions.