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Definition of "haploid" [hap•loid]

  • Having the same number of sets of chromosomes as a germ cell or half as many as a somatic cell. (adjective)
  • Having a single set of chromosomes. (adjective)
  • An organism having haploid cells. (noun)

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 "haploid" in a sentence
  • "The gametes they produce are haploid, meaning that they contain only one of each chromosome pair."
  • "The nucleus of sperm and eggs are haploid, meaning they only have half their normal compliment of genetic material, while somatic cell nuclei are diploid (it occurs to Sci that she's gonna have to explain meiosis some day ...)."
  • "Males are haploid; they have only one copy of the genome."