Phrase guide

surrogate key

noun · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

noun

Meaning 1

A unique identifier for an entity or object, not derived from application data.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: computing, databases, engineering, mathematics, natural-sciences, physical-sciences, sciences

Examples

  • We weren't sure which columns in the table would have unique values, so we used a separate surrogate key as the primary key.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

1 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bulgarian: сурога́тен ключ (surogáten ključ) — Translations