Mendel's law

noun

, Genetics.

1. law of segregation.
2. law of independent assortment.

Mendel's law

/ mĕn′dlz /

1. Any of the principles first proposed by Gregor Mendel to describe the inheritance of traits passed from one generation to the next.
2. ◆ Mendel's first law (also called the law of segregation ) states that during the formation of reproductive cells (gametes), pairs of hereditary factors (genes) for a specific trait separate so that offspring receive one factor from each parent.
3. ◆ Mendel's second law (also called the law of independent assortment ) states that chance determines which factor for a particular trait is inherited.
4. ◆ Mendel's third law (also called the law of dominance ) states that one of the factors for a pair of inherited traits will be dominant and the other recessive, unless both factors are recessive.
5. See more at inheritance

Word History and Origins

Origin of Mendel's law¹

First recorded in 1900–05