chro ‧ mo ‧ some /ˈkrəʊməsəʊm $ ˈkroʊməsoʊm/ BrE AmE noun [countable]
[ Date: 1800-1900 ; Language: Greek ; Origin: chroma ( ⇨ ↑ chromatic ) + soma 'body' ; because chromosomes easily take up coloring substances ]
a part of every living cell that is shaped like a thread and contains the ↑ gene s that control the size, shape etc that a plant or animal has ⇨ y chromosome