WGU C170 DATA MANAGEMENT
APPLICATIONS COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW 2026
◉ associative entity. Answer: See composite entity.
◉ bridge entity. Answer: See composite entity.
◉ candidate key. Answer: A minimal superkey; that is, a key that
does not contain a subset of attributes that is itself a superkey. See
key.
◉ closure. Answer: A property of relational operators that permits
the use of relational algebra operators on existing tables (relations)
to produce new relations.
◉ composite entity. Answer: An entity designed to transform an M:N
relationship into two 1:M relationships. The composite entity's
primary key comprises at least the primary keys of the entities that
it connects. Also known as a bridge entity or associative entity. See
also linking table.
◉ composite key. Answer: A multiple-attribute key.
,◉ dependent. Answer: An attribute whose value is determined by
another attribute.
◉ determination. Answer: The role of a key. In the context of a
database table, the statement "A determines B" indicates that
knowing the value of attribute A means that the value of attribute B
can be looked up.
◉ DIFFERENCE. Answer: In relational algebra, an operator used to
yield all rows from one table that are not found in another union-
compatible table.
◉ DIVIDE. Answer: In relational algebra, an operator that answers
queries about one set of data being associated with all values of data
in another set of data.
◉ domain. Answer: In data modeling, the construct used to organize
and describe an attribute's set of possible values.
◉ entity integrity. Answer: The property of a relational table that
guarantees each entity has a unique value in a primary key and that
the key has no null values.
◉ equijoin. Answer: A join operator that links tables based on an
equality condition that compares specified columns of the tables.
, ◉ flags. Answer: Special codes implemented by designers to trigger
a required response, alert end users to specified conditions, or
encode values. Flags may be used to prevent nulls by bringing
attention to the absence of a value in a table.
◉ foreign key (FK). Answer: An attribute or attributes in one table
whose values must match the primary key in another table or whose
values must be null. See key.
◉ full functional dependence. Answer: A condition in which an
attribute is functionally dependent on a composite key but not on
any subset of the key.
◉ functional dependence. Answer: Within a relation R, an attribute
B is functionally dependent on an attribute A if and only if a given
value of attribute A determines exactly one value of attribute B. The
relationship "B is dependent on A" is equivalent to "A determines B,"
and is written as A B.
◉ homonyms. Answer: The use of the same name to label different
attributes. Homonyms generally should be avoided. Some relational
software automatically checks for homonyms and either alerts the
user to their existence or automatically makes the appropriate
adjustments. See also synonym.
APPLICATIONS COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW 2026
◉ associative entity. Answer: See composite entity.
◉ bridge entity. Answer: See composite entity.
◉ candidate key. Answer: A minimal superkey; that is, a key that
does not contain a subset of attributes that is itself a superkey. See
key.
◉ closure. Answer: A property of relational operators that permits
the use of relational algebra operators on existing tables (relations)
to produce new relations.
◉ composite entity. Answer: An entity designed to transform an M:N
relationship into two 1:M relationships. The composite entity's
primary key comprises at least the primary keys of the entities that
it connects. Also known as a bridge entity or associative entity. See
also linking table.
◉ composite key. Answer: A multiple-attribute key.
,◉ dependent. Answer: An attribute whose value is determined by
another attribute.
◉ determination. Answer: The role of a key. In the context of a
database table, the statement "A determines B" indicates that
knowing the value of attribute A means that the value of attribute B
can be looked up.
◉ DIFFERENCE. Answer: In relational algebra, an operator used to
yield all rows from one table that are not found in another union-
compatible table.
◉ DIVIDE. Answer: In relational algebra, an operator that answers
queries about one set of data being associated with all values of data
in another set of data.
◉ domain. Answer: In data modeling, the construct used to organize
and describe an attribute's set of possible values.
◉ entity integrity. Answer: The property of a relational table that
guarantees each entity has a unique value in a primary key and that
the key has no null values.
◉ equijoin. Answer: A join operator that links tables based on an
equality condition that compares specified columns of the tables.
, ◉ flags. Answer: Special codes implemented by designers to trigger
a required response, alert end users to specified conditions, or
encode values. Flags may be used to prevent nulls by bringing
attention to the absence of a value in a table.
◉ foreign key (FK). Answer: An attribute or attributes in one table
whose values must match the primary key in another table or whose
values must be null. See key.
◉ full functional dependence. Answer: A condition in which an
attribute is functionally dependent on a composite key but not on
any subset of the key.
◉ functional dependence. Answer: Within a relation R, an attribute
B is functionally dependent on an attribute A if and only if a given
value of attribute A determines exactly one value of attribute B. The
relationship "B is dependent on A" is equivalent to "A determines B,"
and is written as A B.
◉ homonyms. Answer: The use of the same name to label different
attributes. Homonyms generally should be avoided. Some relational
software automatically checks for homonyms and either alerts the
user to their existence or automatically makes the appropriate
adjustments. See also synonym.
