The term used to describe heritable or physical characteristics of a living organism is phenotype.

Here's a breakdown:

* Phenotype: The observable characteristics of an organism, including its morphology, physiology, biochemistry, and behavior. These traits are a result of the interaction between the organism's genotype and its environment.

* Genotype: The genetic makeup of an organism, represented by its DNA sequence.

For example, eye color is a phenotypic trait. The genes that determine eye color are part of the genotype, but the actual eye color (blue, brown, green, etc.) is the phenotype.