autosome

American

[aw-tuh-sohm] / ˈɔ təˌsoʊm /

noun

Genetics.

any chromosome other than a sex chromosome.

autosome British

/ ˈɔːtəˌsəʊm /

noun

any chromosome that is not a sex chromosome

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

autosomal adjective

Etymology

Origin of autosome

First recorded in 1905–10; auto- ¹ + -some ³

Vocabulary lists containing autosome

Genetics - High School

Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Monosomic human zygotes missing any one copy of an autosome invariably fail to develop to birth because they lack essential genes.

From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022

Other examples of autosome recessive genetic illnesses include the blood disorder sickle-cell anemia, the fatal neurological disorder Tay–Sachs disease, and the metabolic disorder phenylketonuria.

From Textbooks • Jun. 19, 2013

Monosomic human zygotes missing any one copy of an autosome invariably fail to develop to birth because they have only one copy of essential genes.

From Textbooks • Apr. 25, 2013

But unlike the other case, this couple’s fetus had an inversion of an autosome, a large, gene-dense, non-sex chromosome.

From Scientific American • Dec. 5, 2012

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023