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polygene

American  
[pol-ee-jeen] / ˈpɒl iˌdʒin /

noun

Genetics

  1. one of a group of nonallelic genes that together control a quantitative characteristic in an organism.

polygene British  
/ ˈpɒlɪˌdʒiːn /

noun

  1. any of a group of genes that each produce a small quantitative effect on a particular characteristic of the phenotype, such as height

"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

  • polygenic adjective

Etymology

Origin of polygene

1940–45; back formation from polygenic; poly-, gene, -ic

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.