sexual dimorphism

noun

1. the condition in which the males and females in a species are morphologically different, as with many birds.

sexual dimorphism

noun

1. biology differences in appearance between the males and females of a species

Other Word Forms

• sexually dimorphic adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of sexual dimorphism¹

First recorded in 1885–90

Example Sentences

There are believed to be two ways in which sex chromosomes can cause sex-specific differences, also called sexual dimorphism, in cells.

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Brain cells and heart tissue cells likewise offer good examples of cell-level differences in addition to other levels at which sexual dimorphism makes male and female brains and hearts different, Ahmed noted.

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Differences in cancer incidence and progression between men and women have been known for decades, but a detailed understanding of sexual dimorphism in relation to cancer biology is still limited.

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The main groups in which the phenomenon has been recorded include animal species which feature strong sexual dimorphism; most often insects, especially butterflies, crustaceans, spiders, even lizards and rodents.

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“They have found that Rosetta stone fossil that allows us to really confirm these theories about sexual dimorphism,” Bicknell says.

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