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haploid

American  
[hap-loid] / ˈhæp lɔɪd /

adjective

  1. single; simple.

  2. Biology. pertaining to a single set of chromosomes.

noun

  1. Biology. an organism or cell having only one complete set of chromosomes, ordinarily half the normal diploid number.

haploid British  
/ ˈhæplɔɪd /

adjective

  1. (esp of gametes) having a single set of unpaired chromosomes

"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

noun

  1. a haploid cell or organism

"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
haploid Scientific  
/ hăp′loid′ /

  1. Having a single set of each chromosome in a cell or cell nucleus. In most animals, only the gametes (reproductive cells) are haploid.

  2. Compare aneuploid diploid See Note at mitosis

Other Word Forms

  • haploidy noun

Etymology

Origin of haploid

First recorded in 1905–10; hapl- ( def. ) + -oid

Vocabulary lists containing haploid

Cell Biology - Middle School

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Genetics - Middle School

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Cell Biology - High School

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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.

Genomic sequencing also revealed that D. catalonica has a haploid chromosome number of four autosomes plus one X chromosome, while D. tilosensis has six autosomes and one X chromosome.

From Science Daily • Nov. 2, 2025

To determine the roles of our genes, researcher Thijn Brummelkamp developed a method using haploid cells.

From Science Daily • May 16, 2024

In this case, the ants have haploid cells from two divergent lineages: R and W. Humans, for example, have X and Y haploid cells.

From Salon • Jul. 24, 2023

Cells atop the stalk form an asexual fruiting body that contains haploid spores.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015

The next stage is their separation to the haploid daughter-nuclei, which have resulted from the reduction process.

From Darwin and Modern Science by Seward, A. C. (Albert Charles)

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.