gene
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gene¹
- /d͡ʒiːn/
Sounds like Gene, Jean · Rhymes with -iːn
Where it comes from
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.
noun genes
-
A theoretical unit of heredity of living organisms which may take several values and (in principle) predetermines a precise trait of an organism's form (phenotype), such as hair color.
Near-synonym: cistron (often synonymous)
Similar: cistron
- A segment of DNA or RNA from a cell's or an organism's genome, that may take several forms and thus parameterizes a phenomenon, such as (often) the structure of a protein. Holonym: locus
Gene²
- /ˈd͡ʒiːn/
proper noun Genes
- A diminutive of the male given name Eugene, also used as a formal male given name.
- A diminutive of the female given name Genevieve
- A diminutive of the female given name Eugenia
- A surname
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: allele, dna, genetics, genome, allelomorph, allelic, genetic, genomic, genetically, nucleotide, tox, tick, jin, jenny, linkage, jean
Translations
Every language
Talk about this word "gene." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/gene. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. gene. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/gene "gene." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/gene.Cite this
@misc{gene_2026,
title = {gene},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/gene},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
