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gene

Syllabification: (gene)

Pronunciation: /jēn/

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Definition of gene

noun

Biology

(in informal use) a unit of heredity that is transferred from a parent to offspring and is held to determine some characteristic of the offspring:proteins coded directly by genes
(in technical use) a distinct sequence of nucleotides forming part of a chromosome, the order of which determines the order of monomers in a polypeptide or nucleic acid molecule which a cell (or virus) may synthesize.

Origin:

early 20th century: from German Gen, from Pangen, a supposed ultimate unit of heredity (from Greek pan- 'all' + genos 'race, kind, offspring')

gene in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of gene in the British & World English dictionary

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