sexual reproduction

[ sek-shoo-uhl ree-pruh-duhk-shuhn ]

noun

, Biology.

1. reproduction involving the union of gametes.

sexual reproduction

noun

1. reproduction involving the fusion of a male and female haploid gamete

sexual reproduction

1. See under reproduction

sexual reproduction

1. The production of a new living thing by two parent organisms, with each parent contributing half the material in the DNA of the offspring. The young, genetically different from either parent, can rapidly adapt to their environment by means of natural selection . ( See chromosomes and meiosis .)

Word History and Origins

Origin of sexual reproduction¹

First recorded in 1880–85

Example Sentences

"Clearly, however, their presence in sediments is a normal occurrence and could even play a key role in their biology, particularly in their sexual reproduction, about which we have only rudimentary knowledge," says Eitel.

From Science Daily

Investigating this spot, Braun's team noticed it was not as mixed together as it should have been over millions of years of sexual reproduction.

From Science Daily

The A. cauliformis population before the hurricanes was highly clonal but shifted to greater sexual reproduction for recolonization after the hurricanes, with 85 percent of sexual reproduction mainly due to local larval recruitment.

From Science Daily

No matter how many romantically frustrated mammals have wished they could truly go it alone, though, a genetic quirk means we still need sexual reproduction.

From New York Times

In mammals, sexual reproduction leads to offspring made up of a mixture of genes from their father and mother.

From BBC