Word.ws English Dictionary

holotype

Syllables: ho·lo·type

holotype noun: the single physical example (or illustration) of an organism used to formally describe the species (or lower-order taxon), subsequently to be kept as a reference.

Noun

holotype (plural holotypes)

  1. The single physical example (or illustration) of an organism used to formally describe the species (or lower-order taxon), subsequently to be kept as a reference.
    • The holotype of this species is subglobular in shape and ammoniticonic in its mode of growth.1938, A. K. Miller, Devonian Ammonoids of America, Geological Society of America, page 75
    • The surface of the holotype bears seven rounded annulations which slope very slightly orad from the venter.1942, E. O. Ulrich, Aug. F. Foerste, A. K. Miller, A. G. Unklesbay, Ozarkian and Canadian Cephalopods: Part III: Longicones and Summary, Geological Society of America, page 77

holotype meaning in Tamil

holotype in Tamil

நிறைவகை

Examples of holotype in a sentence

  • If a holotype is not available, a paratype can be examined to confirm identifications.
  • In addition to the holotype, other specimens believed to be of the same species by the author are designated as paratypes.
  • The species P. wellmanae would here be synonymised with P. duncani if only the holotype test was known.

All 10 example sentences with holotype

Forms of holotype

pluralholotypes

Origin of holotype

From holo- + -type.

Words formed from holotype

Questions about holotype

What does holotype mean?
Holotype means the single physical example (or illustration) of an organism used to formally describe the species (or lower-order taxon), subsequently to be kept as a reference.
What is holotype in Tamil?
Holotype in Tamil is நிறைவகை. See Holotype meaning in Tamil.
What part of speech is holotype?
Holotype is a noun.
What is the plural of holotype?
The plural of holotype is holotypes.

Words near holotype in the dictionary

  1. holotrich
  2. holotrichous
  3. holotrichs
  4. holotricin
  5. holotropic
  6. holotype
  7. holotypes
  8. holotypic
  9. Holovanivsk
  10. holoventral
  11. holovid

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: holotype (page history and authors); holotype (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this entry: “holotype.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/holotype. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.