qualifier

noun ! Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about qualifier at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

1. One who qualifies for something, especially a contestant who qualifies for a stage in a competition.
2. A preliminary stage of a competition.
3. A word or phrase, such as an adjective or adverb, that describes or characterizes another word or phrase, such as a noun or verb; one that adds or subtracts attributes to another.