attribute
/ˈætrɪbjuːt/·애트리뷰트·noun, verb
a quality; to ascribe to
LatinCEFR B2
Root
at- (to) + Latin 'tribuere' (to assign)
Latin attribuere (assign to) → Middle French attribuer → English attribute (14th c.)
In a word
at- (to) + tribute (give) = 'give to, hand over to'. "Attribute the success to teamwork" reads, by root: assign success in the direction of teamwork. Same tribut family as tribute, contribute, distribute. HTML attributes and database attributes share the same root — values "handed over" to a target.
Examples
Patience is one of her best attributes.
They attribute the success to teamwork.
Honesty is her defining attribute.
Related
tributecontributedistributeattributiontributary