Dictionary entries for 'mutation'

Synonyms

mu·ta·tion (myōō-tā́shən)

[Middle English mutacioun, from Old French mutacion, from Latin mūtātiō, mūtātiōn-, from past participle of mūtāre, to change; see mutate.]

noun

The act or process of being altered or changed.
An alteration or change, as in nature, form, or quality.
Genetics
1. A change of the DNA sequence within a gene or chromosome of an organism resulting in the creation of a new character or trait not found in the parental type.
2. The process by which such a change occurs in a chromosome, either through an alteration in the nucleotide sequence of the DNA coding for a gene or through a change in the physical arrangement of a chromosome.
3. A mutant.
Linguistics The change that is caused in a sound by its assimilation to another sound, such as umlaut.