This document uses the following terms to explain the referential integrity concept.
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Parent Table | Table referenced by Child table. Also called referenced table. |
| Child Table | Table that defines referential constraints. Also called referencing table. |
| Parent Key | Candidate key in parent table. |
| Primary Key | With respect to referential integrity, parent table column set referenced by foreign key column set in child table. |
| Foreign Key | With respect to referential integrity, child table column set referencing primary key column set in parent table. |
Foreign key columns (referencing columns) and primary key columns (referenced columns) must match in number and data type.