haploid

[ hap-loid ]

adjective

1. single; simple.
2. Biology. pertaining to a single set of chromosomes.

noun

1. Biology. an organism or cell having only one complete set of chromosomes, ordinarily half the normal diploid number.

haploid

/ ˈhæplɔɪd /

adjective

1. (esp of gametes) having a single set of unpaired chromosomes

noun

1. a haploid cell or organism

haploid

/ hăp′loid′ /

1. Having a single set of each chromosome in a cell or cell nucleus. In most animals, only the gametes (reproductive cells) are haploid.
2. Compare aneuploidSee Note at mitosis

Derived Forms

• ˈhaploidy, noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of haploid¹

First recorded in 1905–10; hapl- ( def ) + -oid

Word History and Origins

Origin of haploid¹

C20: from Greek haploeidēs single, from haplous single

Example Sentences

In bees, males are typically haploid and have only one set of chromosomes, but when they're inbred, they can have two sets of the same chromosomes and lack genetic diversity.

From Science Daily

In this case, the ants have haploid cells from two divergent lineages: R and W. Humans, for example, have X and Y haploid cells.

From Salon

He also noted that gourds have a lot of diversity in their gene pool: cucumbers only have 7 haploid chromosomes, while watermelons have 11.

From Salon

“It is imaginative by combining two technologies: haploid induction and genome editing.”

From Science Magazine

The authors tested the effect of inactivating the human versions of six of these genes in vitro in haploid cancer cells — cancer cells that contain only one copy of each gene.

From Nature