meiosis
Syllabification: (mei·o·sis)
Pronunciation: /mīˈōsəs/
Definition of meiosis
noun ( plural meioses /-sēz/)
- 1 Biology a type of cell division that results in four daughter cells each with half the number of chromosomes of the parent cell, as in the production of gametes and plant spores. Compare with mitosis.
Derivatives
Origin:
mid 16th century (meiosis (sense 2)): modern Latin, from Greek meiōsis, from meioun 'lessen', from meiōn 'less'. meiosis (sense 1) dates from the early 20th century