surrogate key

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surrogate key

noun surrogate keys

A unique identifier for an entity or object, not derived from application data. We weren't sure which columns in the table would have unique values, so we used a separate surrogate key as the primary key.

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MLA

"surrogate key." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/surrogate%20key. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

surrogate key. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/surrogate%20key

Chicago

"surrogate key." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/surrogate%20key.

BibTeX

@misc{surrogate_key_2026,
  title = {surrogate key},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/surrogate%20key},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}