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cross-sterile

American  
[kraws-ster-uhl, -ahyl, kros-] / ˈkrɔsˈstɛr əl, -aɪl, ˈkrɒs- /

adjective

  1. incapable of reproducing due to hybridization.

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Origin of cross-sterile

First recorded in 1945–50

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.

This leaves the evolutionists to account for one of the most difficult things in connection with this theory, namely, how did varieties of animals of the same species become cross-sterile?*

From Evolution An Investigation and a Critique by Graebner, Theodore

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

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.