dominant trait

Cultural  

1. In genetics, a trait that will appear in the offspring if one of the parents contributes it. (Compare recessive trait.)

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In humans, dark hair is a dominant trait; if one parent contributes a gene for dark hair and the other contributes a gene for light hair, the child will have dark hair.

Example Sentences

And the pattern of tusklessness in families confirmed the scientists’ hunch: It seems to be a dominant trait, carried by females, that is lethal to males.

From Seattle Times • Oct. 21, 2021

Jackassuredness: The dominant trait of that braggart at the bar.

From Washington Post • Aug. 15, 2019

Cross a brown rabbit with a certain type of white rabbit — each colour being a dominant trait — and both spots and stripes can appear in the offspring.

From Nature • Jul. 15, 2018

Oosterhuis’ most dominant trait as a player and a broadcaster was a genial cheerfulness, and he has retained it amid his ordeal.

From Golf Digest • Jun. 29, 2015

If Faustus is to be labelled according to his dominant trait, then let us describe him as the embodiment of sense-gratification.

From The Growth of English Drama by Wynne, Arnold