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Definition of "clone" []

  • A cell, group of cells, or organism that is descended from and genetically identical to a single common ancestor, such as a bacterial colony whose members arose from a single original cell. (noun)
  • An organism descended asexually from a single ancestor, such as a plant produced by layering or a polyp produced by budding. (noun)
  • A DNA sequence, such as a gene, that is transferred from one organism to another and replicated by genetic engineering techniques. (noun)
  • One that copies or closely resembles another, as in appearance or function: "filled with business-school clones in gray and blue suits” ( Michael M. Thomas). (noun)
  • To make multiple identical copies of (a DNA sequence). (verb-transitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "clone" in a sentence
  • "Biologists use the term clone to describe cells that share a common genetic ancestor."
  • "And Digg as a community continuously slanders anything that is a digg competitor (using the term clone, instead of ‘inspired by’)."
  • "But enlisting Ms. Yingluck as what he describes as his "clone" seems to be a masterstroke, analysts say."