clade

noun

\ ˈklād

How to pronounce clade (audio)

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Definition of clade

: 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

Typically, clades develop when a species is separated by geological barriers, like drifting continents or rising mountains. — Brigit Katz, Smithsonian, "How Glaciers Gave Us the Adorable, Handstanding Spotted Skunk," 5 May 2017 Their eyes are more similar to the eyes of nocturnal animals in other clades than to the eyes of animals that spend their time in the daylight. — Diana Gitig, Ars Technica, "Dinosaurs kept mammals in the dark," 10 Nov. 2017 According to a study published in Ecology and Evolution, the species exists in three genetic sub-groups, or clades. — Brigit Katz, Smithsonian, "How Glaciers Gave Us the Adorable, Handstanding Spotted Skunk," 5 May 2017 When the skunks divided into clades approximately one million years ago, North America was covered with glaciers. — Brigit Katz, Smithsonian, "How Glaciers Gave Us the Adorable, Handstanding Spotted Skunk," 5 May 2017 According to a study published in Ecology and Evolution, the species exists in three genetic sub-groups, or clades. — Brigit Katz, Smithsonian, "How Glaciers Gave Us the Adorable, Handstanding Spotted Skunk," 5 May 2017 Hopes of sequencing the DNA of every living thing on earth are taking a step forward with the announcement of plans to sequence at least 10,000 genomes representing every major clade of plants and eukaryotic microbes. — Dennis Normile, Science | AAAS, "Plant scientists plan massive effort to sequence 10,000 genomes," 27 July 2017 This was enough to identify the animal as part of a clade that includes modern-day crocodiles. — Annalee Newitz, Ars Technica, "This giant crocodile was an apex predator 166 million years ago," 4 July 2017 Over millennia, the clade from Egypt and Southwest Asia began to dominate the world. — Annalee Newitz, Ars Technica, "Cats are an extreme outlier among domestic animals," 19 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'clade.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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The first known use of clade was in 1911

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