wild type

American  

noun

Genetics.

1. an organism having an appearance that is characteristic of the species in a natural breeding population.

2. the form or forms of a gene commonly occurring in nature in a given species.

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wild type British  

noun

1. biology the typical form of a species of organism resulting from breeding under natural conditions

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Other Word Forms

• wild-type
  adjective

Compare meaning

How does wild-type compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• wild type vs. mutant

Example Sentences

The researchers tracked organisms over many generations and compared them with the wild type, or the version most commonly found in nature.

From Science Daily • May 29, 2026

Planned after wild type 2 poliovirus had been eradicated, the switch—which the report calls “the largest coordinated public health effort in history”—was like a trial run for that ultimate goal.

From Science Magazine • May 7, 2024

When the team treated the mice with verapamil, a calcium channel blocker used to treat hypertension and chest pains, the mice quickly recovered muscle function and began to resemble their healthy, wild type peers.

From Science Daily • Jan. 2, 2024

"As new variants of SARS-CoV-2 continue to emerge, it is important to assess the cross-neutralizing capabilities of antibodies naturally elicited during wild type SARS-CoV-2 infection," the authors explain.

From Salon • Sep. 12, 2022

He claimed, as a principle, that our plants of culture had always a tendency to run back toward the original or wild type, when they were grown from seeds.

From American Pomology Apples by Warder, J. A.