clade

noun

: a group of biological taxa (such as species) that includes all descendants of one common ancestor

Examples of clade in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
To this point, all other dairy herds affected by the outbreak have been infected with H5N1 clade 2.3.4.4b, genotype B3.13. Ars Technica, 5 Feb. 2025 Both belong to a group of dinosaurs known as theropods, a clade characterized by hollow bones and three-toed limbs. Scott Travers, Forbes, 4 Dec. 2024 Pterosaurs were a clade of flying reptiles that appeared in the Late Triassic Period. Rosie McCall, Discover Magazine, 14 July 2025 The current strain of bird flu (H5N1 clade 2.3.4.4), which was identified in 2021, is highly contagious and has persisted for multiple seasons, Fleace said. Karl Schneider, IndyStar, 28 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for clade

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Greek kládos "branch, sprig, frond," after cladogenesis — more at clado-

Note: The term was introduced by Julian huxley in "The Three Types of Evolutionary Process," Nature, vol. 180, no. 4584 (September 7, 1957), p. 455.

First Known Use

1911, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of clade was in 1911

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Cite this Entry

“Clade.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/clade. Accessed 20 Aug. 2025.

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