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neoteny

 - 4 dictionary results

ne⋅ot⋅e⋅ny

  [nee-ot-n-ee]
Use neoteny in a Sentence
–noun Biology.
1. Also called pedogenesis. the production of offspring by an organism in its larval or juvenile form; the elimination of the adult phase of the life cycle.
2. a slowing of the rate of development with the consequent retention in adulthood of a feature or features that appeared in an earlier phase in the life cycle of ancestral individuals: Neoteny in the ostrich has resulted in adult birds sporting the down feathers of nestlings.
Origin:
1900–05; < NL neotēnia < Gk neo- neo- + teín(ein) to stretch + -ia -y 3

Related forms:
ne⋅ot⋅e⋅nous  [nee-ot-n-uhs] , adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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ne·ot·e·ny   (nē-ŏt'n-ē)   
n.  

  1. Retention of juvenile characteristics in the adults of a species, as among certain amphibians.

  2. The attainment of sexual maturity by an organism still in its larval stage.


[New Latin neotenia : neo- + Greek teinein, ten-, to extend; see tenesmus.]
ne'o·ten'ic (nē'ə-těn'ĭk, -tē'nĭk), ne·ot'e·nous (-ŏt'n-əs) adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

neoteny 
retention of juvenile characteristics in adult life, 1901, from Ger. neotenie (1884), from Gk. neos "young" + teinein "to extend" (see tenet).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

neoteny ne·ot·e·ny (nē-ŏt'n-ē)
n.
The attainment of sexual maturity by an organism still in its larval stage.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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