Word
gene
US/ˈdʒin/
UK/dʒˈiːn/
Definitions
01unit of heredity
n. a part of a cell that is passed from parents to children and determines how they look and grow.
n. a functional unit of heredity that occupies a specific location on a chromosome and determines a particular characteristic in an organism.
“She has the gene for red hair, just like her mother and grandmother.”
“Scientists have identified a specific gene that may increase a person's risk of developing certain heart conditions later in life.”
Synonyms
02DNA segment
n. a specific piece of DNA that contains the instructions for making proteins in your body.
n. a sequence of DNA or RNA which codes for a molecule that has a function, such as a protein or an RNA molecule.
“The researchers are studying how this gene turns on and off in different cells.”
“The precise mapping of the human genome has allowed researchers to isolate the individual genes responsible for synthesising essential metabolic enzymes.”
Technical
Usage
Often used with verbs like 'express', 'encode', or 'sequence' in technical contexts.
Synonyms
Real-World Examples
“Different versions of the gene can influence risk in opposite directions.” “Earlier work from Bruneau's lab showed that losing one copy of TBX5 affects the levels of hundreds of other heart-specific genes.” Etymology
From German Gen, from Ancient Greek γενεά (geneá, “generation, descent”), from the aorist infinitive of γίγνομαι (gígnomai, “to come into being”). Coined by Danish botanist Wilhelm Ludwig Johannsen in 1909, in a German-language publication, from the last syllable of pangene.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
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englishreference.com/q/gene