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recessive gene

recessive gene

2 4.0
A part passed from parents that causes a feature only if two copies are present
  • noun
  • /rɪˈsɛsɪv dʒin/
  • Specialized
translation icon : gen recesivo
  • Second, it ignores recessive genes that a person may inherit but not exhibit.
  • dominant and recessive gene

Examples

  • For a recessive gene, both parents must pass on the same version for the trait to show in their child.

  • But at 26, Stanton, who was born with profound developmental disabilities because of a recessive gene, can't live independently.

    Blog text (10)
  • It's a recessive gene carried down through families.

  • Only a 25 percent chance if the mother had a recessive gene for blue eyes.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • Of course, she knows it means one dominant and one recessive gene.

  • It's caused by two recessive genes... and happens to the offspring of normal parents.

  • Study and discuss dominant and recessive gene characteristics and look at your own family tree.

    Academic text (1995)
  • Any number of recessive genes, if carried by both parents, offer a 25% risk of disaster with each pregnancy.

    Blog text (29)
  • We show that the resistance in the two lines was controlled by a single recessive gene, cla.

    Academic text (2018)
  • Thus, phenotypic data from the present study suggested that anthracnose resistance in Gy14 and WI2757 may be controlled by a single recessive gene.

    Academic text (2018)

Synonyms

recessive allele
vsrecessive gene
  • Specialized
6.6

A form of a gene that shows only when both copies are the same

is the broader hereditary element, not just a specific variant form

Antonyms

dominant gene
  • Specialized
1 3.9

A gene that makes a trait appear when only one copy is present and hides the other gene

How Dominant

dominant gene
  • Specialized
1 3.9
codominant
  • Specialized
8.1
recessive gene
  • Specialized
2 4.0

Surface Forms

Morphology

recessive + gene

The term is compositionally built: 'recessive' (not expressed unless in homozygotes / masked by a dominant allele) modifies 'gene' (a DNA segment), so the meaning — a gene whose effect only appears when two copies are present — follows directly from the constituents. Although 'recessive' is somewhat technical, the semantic combination is literal and parallels equivalent constructions in other languages, making it transparent to a learner who knows both words.

Etymology

The term recessive gene comes from the idea that recessive means 'pushed back', so the gene is hidden by a stronger 'dominant' gene. That's why a recessive gene means a gene whose effect is 'hidden' unless two copies are present.