monophyly

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noun

In cladistics, the condition of being monophyletic, of including all descendants from a given ancestral species.

Opposite
paraphylypolyphyly
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Meanings

nounmonophyly (uncountable)
  1. uncountablesystematicsIn cladistics, the condition of being monophyletic, of including all descendants from a given ancestral species.

    All of these studies have presupposed acanthodian monophyly and stereotyped acanthodian endoskeletal morphology on Acanthodes, the latest-occurring, and a highly apomorphic genus.

    2009 January 15, Martin D. Brazeau, “The braincase and jaws of a Devonian 'acanthodian' and modern gnathostome origins”, Nature Volume 457 No. 7227, doi:10.1038/nature07436

Synonyms & antonyms

Opposite
paraphylypolyphyly

Translations

Chinese Mandarin 单系群
  • 单系群 (dānxìqún)condition of being monophyletic
French monophylie
  • monophyliecondition of being monophyletic
German Monophylie
  • Monophyliecondition of being monophyletic
Italian monofiletismo
  • monofiletismocondition of being monophyletic
Portuguese monofiletismo
  • monofiletismocondition of being monophyletic
Cite this entry
APA

monophyly. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/monophyly

MLA

“monophyly.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/monophyly. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “monophyly,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/monophyly.

Source: monophyly on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.