X chromosome
noun Genetics.
a sex chromosome of humans and most mammals that determines femaleness when paired with another X chromosome and that occurs singly in males.
Compare
Y chromosome.
Origin of X chromosome
First recorded in 1910–15
British Dictionary definitions for x-chromosome
X-chromosome
noun
the sex chromosome that occurs in pairs in the diploid cells of the females of many animals, including humans, and as one of a pair with the Y-chromosome in those of males
Compare Y-chromosome
Medical definitions for x-chromosome
X-chromosome
n.
The sex chromosome associated with female characteristics, occurring paired in the female and singly in the male sex-chromosome pair.
Scientific definitions for x-chromosome
X-chromosome
[ ĕks′krō′mə-sōm′ ]
The sex chromosome that in female mammals is paired with another X-chromosome and in males is paired with a Y-chromosome. Very few genes on the X-chromosome have counterparts on the Y-chromosome, and since males have only one X-chromosome, any gene present on it (even if the gene is recessive in females) is expressed in males. In females, one of the two X-chromosomes in each cell is deactivated. See more at sex chromosome. See note at sex.