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Glite Dictionary
dihybrid cross

dihybrid cross

8.6
A cross between two parents that differ in two traits to see how those traits are passed on
  • noun
  • /ˈdaɪˌhaɪbrɪd krɔs/
  • Specialized
translation icon : cruzamiento dihíbrido
  • The dihybrid cross revealed the inheritance patterns of both seed shape and seed color in peas.

Examples

  • A classic dihybrid cross demonstrates how genes for different traits assort independently.

  • Students used a dihybrid cross to predict the ratios of offspring with different trait combinations.

  • A dihybrid cross can reveal how traits are inherited together.

  • The results of the dihybrid cross were surprising.

  • In genetics, a dihybrid cross shows how two traits are inherited at the same time.

  • The students learned about a dihybrid cross to study the inheritance of height and color in plants.

  • By performing a dihybrid cross, researchers were able to analyze the genetic outcomes for two distinct traits.

Surface Forms

dihybrid cross singular
dihybrid crosses plural

Morphology

dihybrid + cross

The meaning is directly derivable from its parts: 'dihybrid' refers to inheritance involving two gene loci/traits and 'cross' refers to a breeding or hybridization event. As a straightforward noun+noun technical compound following transparent morphological composition, a learner who knows both constituents can infer the MWE meaning.

Etymology

Dihybrid cross comes from the parts di- meaning 'two', hybrid meaning offspring from two different parents, and cross meaning a planned breeding. So a dihybrid cross is a breeding test that watches how two different traits (for example, seed color and seed shape) pass from parents to offspring, which is why it means 'a genetic cross studying two traits'.