DNA phenotyping
noun
: the process of predicting an organism's phenotype based on analysis of a DNA sample
especially
: the process of predicting an unknown person's physical appearance and especially facial characteristics (such as eye, skin, or hair color) for forensic purposes (such as to identify criminal suspects or human remains)
While DNA phenotyping by Parabon NanoLabs resulted in a rough sketch of a potential suspect, no tips resulted from the composite. —
Jerry Falstrom
Jerry Falstrom Examples of DNA phenotyping in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
In 2012, the company received a grant from the US Department of Defense’s Defense Threat Reduction Agency to explore DNA phenotyping, predicting a person's appearance based only on their DNA.
—Dhruv Mehrotra, WIRED, 22 Jan. 2024
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.
Dhruv Mehrotra, WIRED, 22 Jan. 2024
Cite this Entry
“DNA phenotyping.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/DNA%20phenotyping. Accessed 21 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share