Meanings
plural Y chromosomes · alternative Y-chromosome
- biologyA mammalian sex chromosome: in the XY sex-determination system, cells of females typically have a pair of X chromosomes, while cells of males typically have an X and a Y.
Origin
Named by Nettie Stevens in 1905 using the next letter in sequence following the naming by Hermann Henking in 1890 of the X chromosome. The brief resemblance in the appearance of the X and Y chromosomes to the letters "X" and "Y" respectively during cell division is entirely coincidental.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Chinese Mandarin Y染色體 /Y染色体
- Y染色體 /Y染色体 (wài-rǎnsètǐ)mammalian sex chromosome
Danish Y-kromosom
- Y-kromosommammalian sex chromosome
Dutch Y-chromosoom
- Y-chromosoommammalian sex chromosome
Estonian Y-kromosoom
- Y-kromosoommammalian sex chromosome
Finnish Y-kromosomi
- Y-kromosomimammalian sex chromosome
French chromosome Y
- chromosome Ymammalian sex chromosome
German Y-Chromosom
- Y-Chromosommammalian sex chromosome
Icelandic Y-litningur
- Y-litningurmammalian sex chromosome
Irish Y-chrómasóm
- Y-chrómasómmammalian sex chromosome
Japanese Y染色体
- Y染色体 (wai senshokutai)mammalian sex chromosome
Korean Y 염색체
- Y 염색체 (wai yeomsaekche)mammalian sex chromosome
Polish chromosom Y
- chromosom Ymammalian sex chromosome
Portuguese cromossoma Y, cromossomo Y
- cromossoma Ymammalian sex chromosome
- cromossomo Ymammalian sex chromosome
Romanian cromozom Y
- cromozom Ymammalian sex chromosome
Swedish Y-kromosom
- Y-kromosommammalian sex chromosome
Cite this entry
Y chromosome. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Y%20chromosome
“Y chromosome.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Y%20chromosome. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Y chromosome,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Y%20chromosome.
Source: Y chromosome on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.