DBMS: Pass-Through Query (Definitions)

"A query that is passed uninterpreted to an external server for evaluation. The result set returned by a pass-through query can be used in the FROM clause of a query like an ordinary base table." (Microsoft Corporation, "SQL Server 7.0 System Administration Training Kit", 1999)

"A query that is passed through uninterrupted to an external database engine." (Marilyn Miller-White et al, "MCITP Administrator: Microsoft® SQL Server™ 2005 Optimization and Maintenance 70-444", 2007)

"An SQL-specific query you use to send commands directly to an ODBC database server." (Microsoft, "SQL Server 2012 Glossary", 2012)

DBMS: Record (Definitions)

"A group of related fields (columns) of information treated as a unit. A record is more commonly called a row in a SQL database." (Microsoft Corporation, "SQL Server 7.0 System Administration Training Kit", 1999)

"A row in a database table." (Bill Pribyl & Steven Feuerstein, "Learning Oracle PL/SQL", 2001)

"An aggregation of values of data organized by their relation to a common key." (William H Inmon, "Building the Data Warehouse", 2005)

"In relational databases, a single instance in a table. In the context of hierarchical and network databases, a record is a data structure." (Sharon Allen & Evan Terry, "Beginning Relational Data Modeling" 2nd Ed., 2005)

"A repetition of a field structure across a table. Records repeat field structure in a table, where each repeated field can (and sometimes should) have a different value. Tables are divided into fields and records. Fields impose structure and datatype specifics onto each of the field values, in each record." (Gavin Powell, "Beginning Database Design", 2006)

"This is a group of related fields containing information about a single entity." (Joseph L Jorden & Dandy Weyn, "MCTS Microsoft SQL Server 2005: Implementation and Maintenance Study Guide - Exam 70-431", 2006)

"A grouping of information typically returned from a query or other database operation. It can consist of data from only one table or be an aggregation of information dispersed among many tables" (Robert D Schneider and Darril Gibson, "Microsoft SQL Server 2008 All-In-One Desk Reference For Dummies", 2008)

"In a file processing system, a collection of data that describes one instance of an entity." (Jan L Harrington, "Relational Database Design and Implementation" 3rd Ed., 2009)

"A group of data items treated as a unit by an application; a row in a database table." (Toby J Teorey, ", Database Modeling and Design" 4th Ed., 2010)

"A collection of related (logically connected) fields." (Carlos Coronel et al, "Database Systems: Design, Implementation, and Management 9th Ed", 2011)

"Related characters combined into a field or related fields, such as vendor name, address, and account data." (Linda Volonino & Efraim Turban, "Information Technology for Management 8th Ed", 2011)

"A set of related data values in a file or stream, often associated with a unique key field." (Jon Orwant et al, "Programming Perl" 4th Ed., 2012)

"The physical representation of data about an instance in a flat file." (Craig S Mullins, "Database Administration: The Complete Guide to DBA Practices and Procedures 2nd Ed", 2012)

"A unit of data that typically contains keys and attributes" (Daniel Linstedt & W H Inmon, "Data Architecture: A Primer for the Data Scientist", 2014)

"A collection of related data items." (Adam Gordon, "Official (ISC)2 Guide to the CISSP CBK" 4th Ed., 2015)

"A collection of related fields in a table. In Excel, each record goes into a separate row." (E C Nelson & Stephen L Nelson, "Excel Data Analysis For Dummies ", 2015)

"A row in a table, storing information about a specific person, place, or thing." (Faithe Wempen, "Computing Fundamentals: Introduction to Computers", 2015)

"In a relational database, a single set of values in a table. For example, a particular student’s data would be contained in a record in the Students table. Also called rows or tuples." (Rod Stephens, "Beginning Software Engineering", 2015)

"A collection of related fields that make up a single database entry" (Nell Dale & John Lewis, "Computer Science Illuminated" 6th Ed., 2015)

DBMS: Row (Definitions)

"A set of related columns that describes a specific entity. Also called record." (Karen Paulsell et al, "Sybase SQL Server: Performance and Tuning Guide", 1996)

"A data structure that is a collection of elements (columns), each with its own name and type. A row can be accessed as a collective unit of elements, or the elements can be accessed individually. A row is equivalent to a record." (Microsoft Corporation, "SQL Server 7.0 System Administration Training Kit", 1999)

"In a relational database table, a primary key value plus the associated values of each non-key column. The number of rows usually varies over time." (Bill Pribyl & Steven Feuerstein, "Learning Oracle PL/SQL", 2001)

"A record in a relational table." (Ralph Kimball & Margy Ross, "The Data Warehouse Toolkit 2nd Ed ", 2002)

"The collection of elements that form a horizontal line in the table. Each row in the table represents a single occurrence of the object modeled by the table and stores the values for all the attributes of that object." (Anthony Sequeira & Brian Alderman, "The SQL Server 2000 Book", 2003)

"A group of one or more data elements in a database table that describes a person, place, or thing." (Bob Bryla, "Oracle Database Foundations", 2004)

"A single instance in a table. This is also called a record." (Sharon Allen & Evan Terry, "Beginning Relational Data Modeling" 2nd Ed., 2005)

"A group of related column values in a table. The corresponding formal database term is tuple." (Rod Stephens, "Beginning Database Design Solutions", 2008)

"An individual entry from a given table. For example, a table may contain details about thousands of customers; a specific customer’s data will be found in one row. See also record." (Robert D Schneider & Darril Gibson, "Microsoft SQL Server 2008 All-in-One Desk Reference For Dummies", 2008)

"A horizontal line in the table that contains all attributes of a single object modeled in the table." (Jim Joseph, "Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Reporting Services Unleashed", 2009)

"In relational theory, a set of values for a specified set of attributes." (David C Hay, "Data Model Patterns: A Metadata Map", 2010)

"A group of data items treated as a unit by an application; a record; a tuple in relational database terminology." (Toby J Teorey, ", Database Modeling and Design" 4th Ed., 2010)

"A set of column values describing one logical instance in a relational database table. Technically called a tuple in relational calculus. Equivalent to a record in a flat file." (DAMA International, "The DAMA Dictionary of Data Management", 2011)

"A set of column values describing one logical instance in a table." (Craig S Mullins, "Database Administration", 2012)

"The horizontal component of a table, consisting of a sequence of values, one for each column of the table." (Sybase, "Open Server Server-Library/C Reference Manual", 2019)

DBMS: One-to-Many Relationship (Definitions)

"An instance of an entity is associated with zero or several instances of another entity." (Owen Williams, "MCSE TestPrep: SQL Server 6.5 Design and Implementation", 1998)

"A relationship between two tables in which a single row in the first table can be related to one or more rows in the second table, but a row in the second table can be related only to one row in the first table. A typical one-to-many relationship is between the publishers table and the titles table in the pubs sample database, in which each publisher can be related to several titles, but each title can be related to only one publisher." (Microsoft Corporation, "SQL Server 7.0 System Administration Training Kit", 1999)

"A logical data relationship in which the value of one data element can exist in combination with many values of another data element, but not vice versa." (Ralph Kimball & Margy Ross, "The Data Warehouse Toolkit" 2nd Ed., 2002)

"A relationship type between tables where one row in a given table is related to many other rows in a child table. The reverse condition, however, is not true. A given row in a child table is related to only one row in the parent table." (Bob Bryla, "Oracle Database Foundations", 2004)

"These relationships exist when a single instance of an entity (the parent entity) relates to many instances of another entity (the child entity). One-to-many relationships are the most common relationships in the real world." (Thomas Moore, "EXAM CRAM™ 2: Designing and Implementing Databases with SQL Server 2000 Enterprise Edition", 2005)

"The relationship between two tables dictated by having one record in one table, and many related records in another table." (Gavin Powell, "Beginning Database Design", 2006)

"The use of one key value from a dimension table in many rows of a fact table." (Reed Jacobsen & Stacia Misner, "Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Analysis Services Step by Step", 2006)

"A relationship between two tables in which a single row in the first table can be related to one or more rows in the second table, but a row in the second table can be related only to one row in the first table." (S. Sumathi & S. Esakkirajan, "Fundamentals of Relational Database Management Systems", 2007)

"Used in a relational database to denote that a single row in the parent table can be related to one or more rows in the related child table but that a row in the child table can be related to only a single row in the referenced parent table." (Marilyn Miller-White et al, "MCITP Administrator: Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Optimization and Maintenance 70-444", 2007)

"A relationship where one object of one type may correspond to many objects of another type. For example, one INSTRUCTOR may teach many COURSEs but each COURSE has only one INSTRUCTOR." (Rod Stephens, "Beginning Database Design Solutions", 2008)

"One of three types of relationships (associations among two or more entities) that are used by data models. In a 1:M relationship, one entity instance is associated with many instances of the related entity." (Carlos Coronel et al, "Database Systems: Design, Implementation, and Management" 9th Ed., 2011)

"A link between two entities in which the cardinality of one side of the relationship is one and the other is multiple." (Craig S Mullins, "Database Administration", 2012)

"A relationship in which the connected field is unique in one table and not unique in the other table." (Faithe Wempen, "Computing Fundamentals: Introduction to Computers", 2015)

"A relationship between two entities in a database such that one instance of an entity can be related to many instances of a second entity and the second entity can be related to only one instance of the first." (Jan L Harrington, "Relational Database Design and Implementation" 3rd Ed., 2009)

DBMS: Domain Integrity (Definitions)

"Describes the inclusion of attribute rules (for example, maximum discount and minimum order quantity) within the design of a database." (Owen Williams, "MCSE TestPrep: SQL Server 6.5 Design and Implementation", 1998)

"Integrity that enforces valid entries for a given column. Domain integrity is enforced by restricting the type (through data types), the format (through CHECK constraints and rules), or the range of possible values (through REFERENCE and CHECK constraints, and rules)." (Microsoft Corporation, "SQL Server 7.0 System Administration Training Kit", 1999)

"Domain integrity enforces the validity of entries for a given column. The mechanism, such as the CHECK constraint, can restrict the possible data values by data type, format, or range of values allowed." (Anthony Sequeira & Brian Alderman, "The SQL Server 2000 Book", 2003)

"A relational database integrity mechanism that enforces the validity of data at the column level." (Marilyn Miller-White et al, "MCITP Administrator: Microsoft® SQL Server™ 2005 Optimization and Maintenance 70-444", 2007)

"The validity of entries for a specific column of data." (Microsoft, "SQL Server 2012 Glossary", 2012)

DBMS: Subquery (Definitions)

"A SELECT statement nested inside another SELECT, INSERT, UPDATE, or DELETE statement, or inside another subquery." (Patrick Dalton, "Microsoft SQL Server Black Book", 1997)

"A SELECT statement that is usually a part of a larger SQL statement; a query nested inside a SELECT, INSERT, UPDATE, or DELETE statement." (Owen Williams, "MCSE TestPrep: SQL Server 6.5 Design and Implementation", 1998)

"A SELECT within another SQL statement, usually within another SELECT." (Peter Gulutzan & Trudy Pelzer, "SQL Performance Tuning", 2002)

"A query that is embedded in a main, or parent, query and used to assist in filtering the result set from a query." (Bob Bryla, "Oracle Database Foundations", 2004)

"A nested query that returns information to an outer query, thereby helping the outer query correctly identify results." (Robert D. Schneider and Darril Gibson, "Microsoft SQL Server 2008 All-In-One Desk Reference For Dummies", 2008)

"A complete SELECT statement that is part of another SELECT." (Jan L Harrington, "SQL Clearly Explained 3rd Ed. ", 2010)

"A SELECT statement that contains one or more subqueries." (SQL Server 2012 Glossary, "Microsoft", 2012)

"A query nested within another SQL statement. Unlike implicit queries, subqueries use a SELECT statement to retrieve data." (Oracle, "Database SQL Tuning Guide Glossary", 2013)

"A form of a full-select that is enclosed within parentheses and used as a component of a query." (Sybase, "Open Server Server-Library/C Reference Manual", 2019)

DBMS: Conceptual Data Model (Definitions)

"Represents the overall logical structure of a database, which is independent of any software or data storage structure. A Conceptual model often contains data objects not yet implemented in the physical databases. It gives a formal representation of the data needed to run an enterprise or a business activity." (Sharon Allen & Evan Terry, "Beginning Relational Data Modeling" 2nd Ed., 2005)

"An organization of data that describes the relationships among the primitive data elements. For example, in the ER model, it is a diagram of the entities, their relationships, and their attributes." (Sam Lightstone et al, "Physical Database Design: The Database Professional’s Guide to Exploiting Indexes, Views, Storage, and More", 2007)

"An abstract model or representation of data for a particular domain, business enterprise, field of study, etc., independent of any specific software or information system. Usually expressed in terms of entities and relationships." (J P Getty Trust, "Introduction to Metadata" 2nd Ed., 2008)

"An organization of data that describes the relationships among the primitive data elements. For example, in the ER model, it is a diagram of the entities, their relationships, and their attributes." (Toby J Teorey, ", Database Modeling and Design" 4th Ed, 2010)

"In the ANSI four-schema architecture, this is a description of a portion of an enterprise in terms of the fundamental things of significant interest to it. They are fundamental in that most things seen by business owners are examples of these. The model is constructed in a rigorous manner, being fully normalized, eschewing many-to-many relationships and is expressed in terms of binary relationships only." (David C Hay, "Data Model Patterns: A Metadata Map", 2010)

"A data model that is presented at a high level of abstraction, hiding the underlying details, and making it easier for people to comprehend. A conceptual model should reflect the phenomena in the users' world being modeled as directly as possible, as close to the way the users think. For example, many-to-many relationships are common in conceptual models." (DAMA International, "The DAMA Dictionary of Data Management", 2011)

"A high-level data model identifying major entities and relationships, not fully attributed and therefore not necessarily normalized." (Craig S Mullins, "Database Administration: The Complete Guide to DBA Practices and Procedures" 2nd Ed., 2012)

"A high-level data modeling that specifies an abstract map of concepts and their relationships. SQL’s inherent hierarchical data modeling does this easily and naturally." (Michael M David & Lee Fesperman, "Advanced SQL Dynamic Data Modeling and Hierarchical Processing", 2013)

"A detailed model that captures the overall structure of organizational data that is independent of any database management system or other implementation considerations." (Jeffrey A. Hoffer et al, "Modern Systems Analysis and Design" 7th Ed., 2014)

"The output of the conceptual design process. The conceptual model provides a global view of an entire database. Describes the main data objects, avoiding details." (Carlos Coronel & Steven Morris, "Database Systems: Design, Implementation, & Management"  Ed. 11, 2014)

"A model of a database expressed at platform independent level; describes entities from a considered domain, properties of these entities, and the relationships between entities." (Iwona Dubielewicz et al, "Quality-Driven Database System Development within MDA Approach", 2015)

"The most abstract form of data model. It includes the important entities and the relationships among them and contains only major attributes." (Besma Khalfi et al, "Enhanced F-Perceptory Approach for Dealing with Geographic Data Imprecision from the Conceptual Modeling to the Fuzzy Geographical Database Building", 2017)

DBMS: Dataset (Definitions)

"In general, a collection of related information made up of separate elements that can be treated as a unit. In OLE DB for OLAP, the set of multidimensional data that is the result of executing a multidimensional expression (MDX) statement. For more information about datasets, see your OLE DB documentation." (Microsoft Corporation, "SQL Server 7.0 System Administration Training Kit", 1999)

"A set of data that is the result of executing Transact-SQL SELECT, Data Mining Expressions (DMX), or Multidimensional Expressions (MDX) statements." (Jim Joseph, "Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Reporting Services Unleashed", 2009)

"Any organized collection of data." (DAMA International, "The DAMA Dictionary of Data Management", 2011)

"In ADO.NET, refers to a disconnected memory-resident representation of the database. That is, the DataSet contains tables, columns, rows, relationships, and constraints." (Carlos Coronel et al, "Database Systems: Design, Implementation, and Management" 9th Ed., 2011)

"A collection of related information made up of separate elements that can be treated as a unit in data handling." (Microsoft, "SQL Server 2012 Glossary", 2012)

"Dataset is a general term for referring to a collection of data; most often I have used it to refer to a collection of data that will be measured." (Laura Sebastian-Coleman, "Measuring Data Quality for Ongoing Improvement ", 2012)

"A collection of related measurements. In the data-mining context, this usually refers to an organized electronic file or database containing records of routine business activity or other information relevant to a particular data-mining project." (Meta S Brown, "Data Mining For Dummies", 2014)

"Collection of data corresponding to the contents of a single database." (Hamid R Arabnia et al, "Application of Big Data for National Security", 2015)

"A collection of variables or information that is composed of separate elements but can be managed as a single entity for analysis." (Jonathan Ferrar et al, "The Power of People", 2017)

"Any organised collection of data. ‘Dataset’ is a flexible term and may refer to an entire database, a spreadsheet or other data file, or a related collection of data resources." (Open Data Handbook)

"Refers to a grouping of individual, but related, data points that a computer can process as a single unit. Datasets are referred to as 'big data' when they’re too large to be handled by traditional data processing applications." (Accenture)

DBMS: Entity Integrity (Definitions)

"Within a table, each row describes an entity that is a member of the set kept in the table. Entity integrity ensures that each row in the table is uniquely identifiable." (Owen Williams, "MCSE TestPrep: SQL Server 6.5 Design and Implementation", 1998)

"Integrity that defines a row as a unique entity for a particular table and ensures that the column cannot contain duplicate values. It usually enforces the primary key of a table (through indexes, UNIQUE constraints, or PRIMARY KEY constraints)." (Microsoft Corporation, "SQL Server 7.0 System Administration Training Kit", 1999)

"Entity integrity refers to a state in which all the rows in a database have a non-null primary key value, all tables have primary keys, and no table has any duplicate primary key values. Entity integrity ensures there are no duplicate entries for anything represented in the database." (Anthony Sequeira & Brian Alderman, "The SQL Server 2000 Book", 2003)

"A relational database integrity mechanism that ensures that duplicate rows do not exist in a table. Requiring that all rows in a table have a unique identifier." (Victor Isakov et al, "MCITP Administrator: Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Optimization and Maintenance (70-444) Study Guide", 2007)

"Integrity that defines a row as a unique entity for a particular table and ensures that the column cannot contain duplicate values." (S. Sumathi & S. Esakkirajan, "Fundamentals of Relational Database Management Systems", 2007)

"Requires that all tables have a primary key. The values in the primary key fields must be non-null and no two records can have the same primary key values." (Rod Stephens, "Beginning Database Design Solutions", 2008)

"A constraint on a relation that states that no part of the primary key can be null." (Jan L Harrington, "Relational Database Design and Implementation' 3rd Ed., 2009)

"The property of a relational table that guarantees that each entity has a unique value in a primary key and that there are no null values in the primary key." (Carlos Coronel et al, "Database Systems: Design, Implementation, and Management" 9th Ed., 2011)

"A state in which every row of every table can be uniquely identified." (Microsoft, "SQL Server 2012 Glossary", 2012)

"The most basic level of data integrity provided by relational databases stating that each occurrence of an entity must be uniquely identifiable." (Craig S Mullins, "Database Administration", 2012)

DBMS: Data definition (Definitions)

"The process of setting up databases and creating database objects such as tables, indexes, rules, defaults, procedures, triggers, and views." (Karen Paulsell et al, "Sybase SQL Server: Performance and Tuning Guide", 1996)

"A data definition specifies the attributes, properties, and objects in a database." (Anthony Sequeira & Brian Alderman, "The SQL Server 2000 Book", 2003)

"Specification of data entities, including their attributes and relationships, in a coherent database structure to create a schema." (Sharon Allen & Evan Terry, "Beginning Relational Data Modeling" 2nd Ed., 2005)

"1.Statements that specify the business meaning associated with a conceptual, logical, or physical data entity or attribute. 2.The process of creating business meta-data, including names, meanings, integrity rules, and domain values. 3.In computer programming, the statements in a computer program that specify the physical attributes of the data to be processed, such as location and quantity of data." (DAMA International, "The DAMA Dictionary of Data Management", 2011)

"The attributes, properties, and objects in a database." (Microsoft, "SQL Server 2012 Glossary", 2012)

"An executable statement where a variable is assigned a value." (Software Quality Assurance)

DBMS: Correlated Subquery (Definitions)

 "A subquery that cannot be evaluated independently, but depends on the outer query for its results. Also called a repeating subquery, since the subquery is executed once for each row that might be selected by the outer query. See also nested query." (Karen Paulsell et al, "Sybase SQL Server: Performance and Tuning Guide", 1996)

"A repeating subquery. Many queries can be evaluated by executing the subquery once and substituting the resulting value or values into the WHERE clause of the outer query. In queries that include a correlated subquery, the subquery depends on the outer query for its values. This means that the subquery is executed repeatedly, one time for each row that is selected by the outer query." (Microsoft Corporation, "SQL Server 7.0 System Administration Training Kit", 1999)

"A subquery that references a column in an outer statement. The inner query is executed for each candidate row in the outer statement." (Anthony Sequeira & Brian Alderman, "The SQL Server 2000 Book", 2003)

"A subquery that contains a reference to a column in the main, or parent, query." (Bob Bryla, "Oracle Database Foundations", 2004)

"A subquery that a DBMS cannot process completely before turning to the outer query. The DBMS must execute the subquery repeatedly for every row in the outer query." (Jan L Harrington, "SQL Clearly Explained 3rd Ed. ", 2010)

"A subquery that contains a correlated reference." (Sybase, "Open Server Server-Library/C Reference Manual", 2019)

DBMS: Ad-hoc Query (Definitions)

"A query created for immediate execution. You can create an ad hoc query from scratch or by modifying an existing query that is saved in a text file." (Patrick Dalton, "Microsoft SQL Server Black Book", 1997)

"A query consisting of dynamically constructed SQL. Desktop query tools are often used to construct ad hoc queries. The opposite of a static query." (Microsoft Corporation, "Microsoft SQL Server 7.0 Data Warehouse Training Kit", 2000)

"An original or unplanned query that is used for in-depth analysis or to solve a specific problem." (Margaret Y Chu, "Blissful Data ", 2004)

"Any query that can’t be determined (isn’t stored and reused) prior to the moment the query is issued. It’s usually dynamically constructed Structured Query Language (SQL), often by desktop-resident query tools." (Sharon Allen & Evan Terry, "Beginning Relational Data Modeling" 2nd Ed., 2005)

"A query sent to a database by an end-user or power user, just trying to get some information quickly. Ad-hoc queries are subjected to a database where the content, structure, and performance of said query, are not necessarily catered for by the database model. The result could be a performance problem, and in extreme cases, even an apparent database halt." (Gavin Powell, "Beginning Database Design", 2006)

"A query issued infrequently, or on an as-needed basis." (Robert D Schneider & Darril Gibson, "Microsoft SQL Server 2008 All-in-One Desk Reference For Dummies", 2008)

"A query that is executed infrequently. Ad hoc queries can sometimes be troublesome because untrained users can create queries that are inefficient, causing the server to suffer significant performance degradation." (Darril Gibson, "MCITP SQL Server 2005 Database Developer All-in-One Exam Guide", 2008)

"A query issued infrequently, or on an as-needed basis. Typically ad hoc queries are issued against remote data sources from a SQL Server, but can also be issued against SQL Server from a wide variety of sources. If you have a need to issue queries against a remote data source more often, linked servers are created to simplify the syntax of the ad hoc query." (Robert D. Schneider and Darril Gibson, "Microsoft SQL Server 2008 All-In-One Desk Reference For Dummies", 2008)

"A query constructed and executed to answer an immediate and unanticipated question or need, in contrast to a planned query. For example, a dynamic SQL SELECT statement against a relational database, constructed by a knowledge worker using an English-like or point-and-click interface of a desktop-resident Business Intelligence tool. The data returned may drive further analysis and reporting." (DAMA International, "The DAMA Dictionary of Data Management", 2011)

"A query constructed and executed to answer an immediate and unanticipated question or need." (Craig S Mullins, "Database Administration", 2012)

"Any spontaneous or unplanned question or query. It is a query that consists of dynamically constructed SQL and is one capability in a data-driven DSS." (Ciara Heavin & Daniel J Power, "Decision Support, Analytics, and Business Intelligence" 3rd Ed., 2017)

DBMS: Query (Definitions)

"1. A request for the retrieval of data with a select statement. 2. Any SQL statement that manipulates data." (Karen Paulsell et al, "Sybase SQL Server: Performance and Tuning Guide", 1996)

"A specific request for data retrieval, modification, or deletion." (Microsoft Corporation, "SQL Server 7.0 System Administration Training Kit", 1999)

"A SELECT statement." (Peter Gulutzan & Trudy Pelzer, "SQL Performance Tuning", 2002)

"A request for information based on the value of certain fields against a database or a data warehouse." (Margaret Y Chu, "Blissful Data ", 2004)

"A SQL SELECT statement that extracts data from a database." (Rod Stephens, "Beginning Database Design Solutions", 2008)

"The mechanism to get data out of a database. A query is comprised of constraints used to filter data out of the results, and defines the data elements to be included in the result set and possibly some mathematical computations, grouping, or sorting of the data." (Laura Reeves, "A Manager's Guide to Data Warehousing", 2009)

"A computing function that requests data from the database, stating the parameters and constraints for the request." (Paulraj Ponniah, "Data Warehousing Fundamentals for IT Professionals", 2010)

"(1) A SQL SELECT statement written and issued against a database. (2) To request data from a database." (Craig S Mullins, "Database Administration", 2012)

"An operation that retrieves data from tables or views. For example, SELECT * FROM employees is a query." (Oracle, "Database SQL Tuning Guide Glossary", 2013)

"A procedure executed by a computer program in search of qualified data" (Daniel Linstedt & W H Inmon, "Data Architecture: A Primer for the Data Scientist", 2014)

"A request for information from a database that is based on specific conditions: for example, a request for a list of all customers in a customer table whose balances are greater than USD1000. A component of certain SQL or XQuery statements that specifies a result set." (Sybase, "Open Server Server-Library/C Reference Manual", 2019)

"A type of question accepted by a database about the data it holds. A complex query may ask the database to select records according to some criteria, aggregate certain quantities across those records, etc. Many databases accept queries in the specialised language SQL or dialects of it." (Open Data Handbook)

DBMS: Data Modeling (Definitions)

"A method of representing a database using a logical and graphical view. Data modeling can be performed using something as simple as pencil and paper or as involved as sophisticated software. The purpose of data modeling is to bridge the gap between the actual business process and the physical database implementation. The output of data modeling is usually a graphical representation of the data structures." (Microsoft Corporation, "Microsoft SQL Server 7.0 Data Warehouse Training Kit", 2000)

"A process of defining the entities, attributes, and relationships between the entities in preparation for creating the physical database." (Bob Bryla, "Oracle Database Foundations", 2004)

"The activity wherein subject areas of data and relationships between them are depicted in a diagram." (Margaret Y Chu, "Blissful Data ", 2004)

"A structured approach used to identify major components of an information system’s specifications. Data modeling enables you to promote data as a corporate asset to share across the enterprise, provide business professionals with a graphical display of their business rules and requirements, bridge the gap between business experts and technical experts, establish consensus/agreement, and build a stable data foundation." (Sharon Allen & Evan Terry, "Beginning Relational Data Modeling 2nd Ed.", 2005)

[Evolutionary data modeling:] "A process in which you model the data aspects of a system iteratively and incrementally, to ensure that the database schema evolves in step with the application code." (Pramod J Sadalage & Scott W Ambler, "Refactoring Databases: Evolutionary Database Design", 2006)

[evolutionary data modeling]: "Methodologies to iteratively and incrementally model database systems so that schema and applications evolve in a parallel way." (Vincenzo Deufemia et al, "Evolutionary Database: State of the Art and Issues", 2009)

[E-R Data Modeling:] "A popular data modeling technique used for representing business entities and the relationships among them." (Paulraj Ponniah, "Data Warehousing Fundamentals for IT Professionals", 2010)

"1.An analysis and design method, building data models to a) define and analyze data requirements, b) design logical and physical data structures that support these requirements, and c) define business and technical meta-data. 2.The act of creating a data model." (DAMA International, "The DAMA Dictionary of Data Management", 2011)

[enterprise data modeling:] "The development of a common consistent view and understanding of data entities and attributes, and their relationships across the enterprise." (DAMA International, "The DAMA Dictionary of Data Management", 2011)

"Data modeling is the ability and process of specifying and constructing complex data structures that represent specific semantics. In SQL, this can be performed with the ANSI-92 LEFT outer join operation that can inherently define and process complex data structures." (Michael M David & Lee Fesperman, "Advanced SQL Dynamic Data Modeling and Hierarchical Processing", 2013)

"A model that is used to either logically or physically organize the data elements in a database, including the definition of the data elements and of the relationships among the data elements for a specific industry, such as banking." (Jim Davis & Aiman Zeid, "Business Transformation: A Roadmap for Maximizing Organizational Insights", 2014)

"Considers data independently of the way the data are processed and of the components that process the data. A process used to define and analyze data requirements needed to support the business processes." (Adam Gordon, "Official (ISC)2 Guide to the CISSP CBK" 4th Ed., 2015)

"The process of architecting data objects and structures as they relate to a business or other context." (Jason Williamson, "Getting a Big Data Job For Dummies", 2015)

"The process of identifying and representing the definition, usage, and/or storage of data." (George Tillmann, "Usage-Driven Database Design: From Logical Data Modeling through Physical Schmea Definition", 2017)

"With dimensional data modeling or denormalization, data is collapsed, combined, or grouped together. Within dimensional data modeling, the concepts of facts (measures) and dimensions (context) are used. If dimensions are collapsed into single structures, the data model is also often called a star schema. If the dimensions are not collapsed, the data model is called snowflake. The dimensional models are typically seen within data warehouse systems." (Piethein Strengholt, "Data Management at Scale", 2020)

"A method that is used to define and analyze the data requirements that are needed in order to support the business functions of an enterprise. These data requirements are recorded as a conceptual data model with associated data definitions. Data modeling defines the relationships between data elements and structures." (Genesys) 

"The analysis of data objects using data modelling techniques to create insights from the data." (Analytics Insight)

DBMS: Relationship (Definitions)

"A logical linkage between two entities that describes how the entities are associated with each other." (Owen Williams, "MCSE TestPrep: SQL Server 6.5 Design and Implementation", 1998)

"A link between tables that references the primary key in one table to a foreign key in another table. The relationship line is represented in a database diagram by a solid line if referential integrity between the tables is enforced, or a dashed line if referential integrity is not enforced for INSERT and UPDATE transactions. The endpoints of a relationship line show a primary key symbol to denote a primary-key-to-foreign-key relationship or an infinity symbol to denote the foreign key side of a one-to-many relationship." (Microsoft Corporation, "SQL Server 7.0 System Administration Training Kit", 1999)

"In database design, a property that exists between two (or sometimes more) entities. The property may represent a state, a behavior, an action, or some other logical combination and usually has a verb phrase or prepositional phrase as its name. In some modeling techniques, each relationship has two directions of interpretation; for example, in a library application, considering the book and book copy entities, a book may be owned as one or more book copies, and a book copy must be of exactly one book." (Bill Pribyl & Steven Feuerstein, "Learning Oracle PL/SQL", 2001)

"A link between tables that references the primary key in one table to a foreign key in another table. In English Query, a relationship is an association between entities that describes what those entities have to do with one another." (Anthony Sequeira & Brian Alderman, "The SQL Server 2000 Book", 2003)

"A relationship documents the business rule associating two entities. The relationship is used to describe how the two entities are naturally linked to each other." (Claudia Imhoff et al, "Mastering Data Warehouse Design", 2003)

"A connection between two entities that signifies the presence of a business rule." (Margaret Y Chu, "Blissful Data ", 2004)

"A connection between entities ties a parent entity to a child entity through the Primary Key in one entity to a Foreign Key in another." (Thomas Moore, "EXAM CRAM™ 2: Designing and Implementing Databases with SQL Server 2000 Enterprise Edition", 2005)

"A logical link between two entities that represents a business rule or constraint." (Sharon Allen & Evan Terry, "Beginning Relational Data Modeling" 2nd Ed., 2005)

"A social association or connection between two or more people." (Victor Isakov et al, "MCITP Administrator: Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Optimization and Maintenance (70-444) Study Guide", 2007)

"An association between two tables. For example, if an order contains several order items, there is a one-to-many relationship between Orders and OrderItems tables. Don't confuse this term with "relation."" (Rod Stephens, "Beginning Database Design Solutions", 2008)

"A link between tables that references the primary key in one table to a foreign key in another table." (Jim Joseph, "Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Reporting Services Unleashed", 2009)

"A real-world association among one or more entities. For example, “purchased” could be a relationship between customer and product." (Toby J Teorey, ", Database Modeling and Design" 4th Ed., 2010)

"The complete association among specific entity classes consisting of two or more relationship roles." (David C Hay, "Data Model Patterns: A Metadata Map", 2010)

"An association between entities." (Carlos Coronel et al, "Database Systems: Design, Implementation, and Management" 9th Ed., 2011)

"Defines how different entities are associated with each other. A relationship is defined by the keys: the primary key in the parent entity and the foreign key in the dependent entity." (Craig S Mullins, "Database Administration", 2012)

"The association of two or more entities; through this association, it expresses the business policy of the data model." (James Robertson et al, "Complete Systems Analysis: The Workbook, the Textbook, the Answers", 2013)

"A connection between two tables based on a shared field." (Faithe Wempen, "Computing Fundamentals: Introduction to Computers", 2015)

"Any connection between two or more variables. In research, there are many types of relationships, from simple contingencies to established causal relationships." (K  N Krishnaswamy et al, "Management Research Methodology: Integration of Principles, Methods and Techniques", 2016)

"A defined connection between the rows of a table or the rows of two tables. A relationship is the internal representation of a referential constraint." (Sybase, "Open Server Server-Library/C Reference Manual", 2019)

DBMS: Joins (Definitions)

 "A basic operation in a relational system which links the rows in two or more tables by comparing the values in specified columns." (Karen Paulsell et al, "Sybase SQL Server: Performance and Tuning Guide", 1996)

"Process of combining data from two or more tables into a single operation." (Owen Williams, "MCSE TestPrep: SQL Server 6.5 Design and Implementation", 1998)

"As a verb, to combine the contents of two or more tables and produce a result set that incorporates rows and columns from each table. Tables are typically joined using data that they have in common. As a noun, join means the process or result of joining tables, as in the term inner join, which indicates a particular method of joining tables." (Microsoft Corporation, "SQL Server 7.0 System Administration Training Kit", 1999)

"The relational operator that allows data from multiple tables to be combined. A join matches rows of multiple tables based on columns with common values." (Peter Gulutzan & Trudy Pelzer, "SQL Performance Tuning", 2002)

"To combine two or more tables in a query to produce rows as a result of a comparison between columns in the tables." (Bob Bryla, "Oracle Database Foundations", 2004)

"The act of combining the data in two tables based on values found in each of the tables." (Thomas Moore, "EXAM CRAM™ 2: Designing and Implementing Databases with SQL Server 2000 Enterprise Edition", 2005)

"To combine data in two tables based on matching values found in each of the tables." (Thomas Moore, "MCTS 70-431: Implementing and Maintaining Microsoft SQL Server 2005", 2006)

"The matching of a record from one relational database table with a record in a second relational database table using a common column." (Reed Jacobsen & Stacia Misner, "Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Analysis Services Step by Step", 2006)

"Used to combine the contents of two or more tables. The most common join is an inner join. Other joins are left, right, full, and cross." (Darril Gibson, "MCITP SQL Server 2005 Database Developer All-in-One Exam Guide", 2008)

"A query that selects data from more than one table, usually using a JOIN or WHERE clause to indicate which records in the two tables go together." (Rod Stephens, "Beginning Database Design Solutions", 2008)

"A process or a result of combining the contents of two or more tables and producing a resultset that incorporates rows and columns from each table." (Jim Joseph, "Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Reporting Services Unleashed", 2009)

"A database operation used to merge data from two related tables that have common attributes." (Paulraj Ponniah, "Data Warehousing Fundamentals for IT Professionals", 2010)

"A relational algebra operation that combines two tables making new rows that are a combination of one row from each of the two source tables." (Jan L Harrington, "SQL Clearly Explained 3rd Ed. ", 2010)

"An operation in which the data from two tables is combined into a larger results table based on shared data values in each table." (Craig S Mullins, "Database Administration", 2012)

"To combine the contents of two or more tables and produce a result set that incorporates rows and columns from each table. Tables are typically joined using data that they have in common." (SQL Server 2012 Glossary, "Microsoft", 2012)

"A statement that retrieves data from multiple tables specified in the FROM clause of a SQL statement. Join types include inner joins, outer joins, and Cartesian joins." (Oracle, "Database SQL Tuning Guide Glossary", 2013)

"The process of merging two or more tables on the basis of a common key" (Daniel Linstedt & W H Inmon, "Data Architecture: A Primer for the Data Scientist", 2014)

"An SQL relational operation in which data can be retrieved from two tables, typically based on a join condition specifying join columns. See also equijoin, full outer join, inner join, left outer join, outer join, right outer join, star join." (Sybase, "Open Server Server-Library/C Reference Manual", 2019)

DBMS: Entities (Definitions)

"A database or a database object that can be identified by a unique ID and that is backed by database pages." (Karen Paulsell et al, "Sybase SQL Server: Performance and Tuning Guide", 1996)

"An entity is a real-world object, referred to by a noun (person, place, thing, or idea), such as people, products, shipments, cities, and so on. Entities are semantic objects used in English Query." (Anthony Sequeira & Brian Alderman, "The SQL Server 2000 Book", 2003)

"The main object in an entity-relationship model, which can be deduced by case study examination. Entities represent the things, places, people, concepts, and things involved in a real-world situation, and contain within them properties or attributes that relate to them." (Thomas Moore, "EXAM CRAM™ 2: Designing and Implementing Databases with SQL Server 2000 Enterprise Edition", 2005)

"An object in our logical model that is used to store information about a 'thing of interest'." (Marilyn Miller-White et al, "MCITP Administrator: Microsoft® SQL Server™ 2005 Optimization and Maintenance 70-444", 2007)

"An encapsulation of data that is recognized by a business domain expert as a thing. Logical data entities can be tied to applications, repositories, and services and may be structured according to implementation considerations." (David Lyle & John G Schmidt, "Lean Integration", 2010)

 "(1) An element or set of elements that has a distinct, separate existence, although it need not  be a material existence. (2) An abstraction from the complexities of some domain." (International Qualifications Board for Business Analysis, 2011)

"Something that exists and is capable of being described. It is a person, place, thing, concept, or event about which your organization maintains facts." (Craig S Mullins, "Database Administration: The Complete Guide to DBA Practices and Procedures" 2nd Ed., 2012)

"An information structure that represents the data characteristic of an entity." (Microsoft) 

"An encapsulation of data that is recognized by a business domain expert as a thing. Logical data entities can be tied to applications, repositories, and services and may be structured according to implementation considerations." (TOGAF)