pedigree

ped·i·gree

noun \ˈpe-də-ˌgrē\

Definition of PEDIGREE

1

: a register recording a line of ancestors

2

a : an ancestral line : lineage

b : the origin and the history of something; broadly : background, history

3

a : a distinguished ancestry

b : the recorded purity of breed of an individual or strain

— ped·i·greed \-ˌgrēd\ or pedigree adjective

Examples of PEDIGREE

1. That horse has an impressive pedigree.
2. What is the dog's pedigree?
3. The puppy came with papers proving its pedigree.
4. Democracy is an idea with a pedigree stretching back to ancient Greece.
5. The company has an excellent pedigree with over a century in the business.

Origin of PEDIGREE

Middle English pedegru, from Anglo-French pé de grue, literally, crane's foot; from the shape made by the lines of a genealogical chart

First Known Use: 15th century

Related to PEDIGREE

Synonyms

birth, blood, bloodline, breeding, descent, extraction, family tree, genealogy, line, lineage, origin, parentage, ancestry, stock, strain

Antonyms

issue, posterity, progeny, seed

Related Words

heredity, succession; family, house; kin, kindred, relations, relatives; race

Near Antonyms

offspring; child, heir, inheritor, son, successor

Other Genetics Terms

chimera, hermaphrodite, plasticity

Rhymes with PEDIGREE

abatis, ABC, ABD, abductee, absentee, acquiree, addressee, adoptee, advisee, alienee, allottee, amputee, apogee, appellee, appointee, appraisee, après-ski, arrestee, assignee, attendee, auditee, awardee, axletree, BVD, Baha'i, bain-marie, barley-bree, batterie, billi-bi, boiserie, bonhomie, booboisie, bourgeoisie, brasserie, brusquerie, bumblebee, camphor tree, camporee, cap-a-pie, causerie, Chamonix, Cherokee, chickadee, chickaree, chimpanzee, China Sea, Christmas tree, chroma-key, coati, Coligny, conferee, consignee, cop a plea, Coral Sea, counselee, context-free, counterplea, cruelty-free, Danaë, DDT, debauchee, Debussy, departee, deportee, dernier cri, designee, detainee, devisee, devotee, diploe, disagree, dischargee, divorcé, divorcée, DME, dungaree, duty-free, eau-de-vie, employee, endorsee, enlistee, enrollee, enshrinee, epopee, escadrille, escapee, ESP, evictee, expellee, family tree, fancy-free, fantasy, fedayee, fever tree, filigree, fleur-de-lis, franchisee, fricassee, function key, galilee, Galilee, garnishee, gaucherie, Gemini, Greenland Sea, guarani, guarantee, Hawaii, HIV, Holy See, honeybee, honoree, housemaid's knee, humble-bee, inductee, Inland Sea, internee, invitee, Irish Sea, IUD, jacquerie, jamboree, Java Sea, Joshua tree, jubilee, Judas tree, jumper's knee, jus soli, Kayseri, kedgeree, kidnappee, killer bee, LCD, LED, legatee, libelee, licensee, LSD, maître d', Malay Sea, manatee, master key, Mormon tea, mortgagee, murderee, NBC, nominee, obligee, oversea, oversee, Park Chung Hee, parolee, parti pris, pass degree, patentee, peppertree, perigee, permittee, pharisee, picotee, piroshki, point d'appui, potpourri, praecipe, presentee, promisee, public-key, rapparee, referee, refugee, rejectee, renminbi, repartee, retiree, returnee, RPV, rubber tree, saddletree, Sadducee, sangaree, Savaii, selectee, Semele, shivaree, slotting fee, snickersnee, spelling bee, spindle tree, SST, STD, Tappan Zee, Tenebrae, Tennessee, third degree, thirty-three, TNT, to a tee, toile de Jouy, torii, transferee, tulip tree, undersea, user fee, vaccinee, value-free, varnish tree, verdigris, VIP, vis-à-vis, wannabe, warrantee, Wounded Knee

ped·i·gree

noun \ˈped-ə-ˌgrē\   (Medical Dictionary)

Medical Definition of PEDIGREE

: a record of the ancestry of an individual <the pedigree of a diabetic patient>

pedigree

noun    (Concise Encyclopedia)

Record of ancestry or purity of breed. Pedigrees of domesticated animals are maintained by governmental or private record associations or breed organizations in many countries. In human genetics, pedigree diagrams are used to trace the inheritance of a specific trait, abnormality, or disease. Standard symbols are used to represent males, females, mating (marriage), and offspring. The offspring symbols appear from left to right in the order of birth and are connected to the marriage line by a vertical line. Possession of the character under study is shown by a solid or blackened symbol, and absence is shown by an open or clear symbol.