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heterogony

American  
[het-uh-rog-uh-nee] / ˌhɛt əˈrɒg ə ni /

noun

Biology.

  1. the alternation of dioecious and hermaphroditic individuals in successive generations, as in certain nematodes.

  2. the alternation of parthenogenetic and sexual generations.

heterogony British  
/ ˌhɛtəˈrɒɡənɪ /

noun

  1. biology the alternation of parthenogenetic and sexual generations in rotifers and similar animals

  2. the condition in plants, such as the primrose, of having flowers that differ from each other in the length of their stamens and styles Compare homogony

"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

  • heterogonous adjective
  • heterogonously adverb

Etymology

Origin of heterogony

First recorded in 1865–70; hetero- + -gony

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.