1
: the presentation of a thing with underemphasis especially in order to achieve a greater effect : understatement
2
: the cellular process that results in the number of chromosomes in gamete-producing cells being reduced to one half and that involves a reduction division in which one of each pair of homologous chromosomes passes to each daughter cell and a mitotic division compare mitosis
Examples of meiosis in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Typical cell division happens by either mitosis or meiosis.
—
Krissi Danielsson, Parents, 30 July 2024
In meiosis, a cell also divides into two halves, but these halves each have 23 chromosomes.
—Krissi Danielsson, Parents, 30 July 2024
That division, called meiosis, results in the egg, which can eventually be fertilized by a sperm, and three extra cells called polar bodies.
—Stephanie Pappas, Scientific American, 18 Feb. 2024
The lab is also trying to figure out how to get eggs to enter a special form of cell division called meiosis that prepares them for being fertilized.
—Ryan Cross, BostonGlobe.com, 21 Mar. 2023
My sons’ high-school biology classes spent more time designing a model recycling center than teaching mitosis and meiosis.
—Andy Kessler, WSJ, 18 Sep. 2022
And rearrangements are typically not advantageous: During meiosis and the formation of gametes, all chromosomes need to pair up with a matching partner.
—Quanta Magazine, 2 Feb. 2022
In automixis, small cells called polar bodies – also produced through meiosis with eggs – can merge with an egg to produce offspring and create offspring that are similar to the mother but not exact clones.
—Julia Musto, Fox News, 20 Aug. 2021
Ovaries produce eggs through a complex process called meiosis, where the cells replicate, reorganize, and separate.
—Corryn Wetzel, National Geographic, 25 Aug. 2020
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Krissi Danielsson, Parents, 30 July 2024
In meiosis, a cell also divides into two halves, but these halves each have 23 chromosomes.
—Krissi Danielsson, Parents, 30 July 2024
That division, called meiosis, results in the egg, which can eventually be fertilized by a sperm, and three extra cells called polar bodies.
—Stephanie Pappas, Scientific American, 18 Feb. 2024
The lab is also trying to figure out how to get eggs to enter a special form of cell division called meiosis that prepares them for being fertilized.
—Ryan Cross, BostonGlobe.com, 21 Mar. 2023
My sons’ high-school biology classes spent more time designing a model recycling center than teaching mitosis and meiosis.
—Andy Kessler, WSJ, 18 Sep. 2022
And rearrangements are typically not advantageous: During meiosis and the formation of gametes, all chromosomes need to pair up with a matching partner.
—Quanta Magazine, 2 Feb. 2022
In automixis, small cells called polar bodies – also produced through meiosis with eggs – can merge with an egg to produce offspring and create offspring that are similar to the mother but not exact clones.
—Julia Musto, Fox News, 20 Aug. 2021
Ovaries produce eggs through a complex process called meiosis, where the cells replicate, reorganize, and separate.
—Corryn Wetzel, National Geographic, 25 Aug. 2020
Cite this Entry
“Meiosis.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/meiosis. Accessed 14 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
meiosis
noun
mei·o·sis
mī-ˈō-səs 
plural meioses
-ˈō-ˌsēz
: the process by which the number of chromosomes in a cell that produces sex cells is reduced to one half and that involves a reduction division in which one of each pair of homologous chromosomes passes to each daughter cell followed by a mitotic division compare mitosis sense 1
Medical Definition
meiosis
noun
mei·o·sis
mī-ˈō-səs
plural meioses
-ˌsēz
: the cellular process that results in the number of chromosomes in gamete-producing cells being reduced to one half and that involves a reduction division in which one of each pair of homologous chromosomes passes to each daughter cell and a mitotic division compare mitosis sense 1
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