What does "candidate key" mean?

In the design of a database table, a column (or an irreducible group of them) able to identify every row of the table, having a unique value or set of values in each row. One of the candidate keys (abbreviated CKs) will be the primary key.

What is a synonym for "candidate key"?

Common synonyms include: identification key.

Candidate key

noun

noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1
In the design of a database table, a column (or an irreducible group of them) able to identify every row of the table, having a unique value or set of values in each row. One of the candidate keys (abbreviated CKs) will be the primary key.

Synonyms

All synonyms

identification key

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