|nē(ˌ)ō+ noun
Usage: often capitalized N & usually capitalized L
Etymology: ne- + lamarckism
: a modern theory of evolution based on Lamarckism and retaining the fundamental concept that acquired characters are inherited: as
a. : the theory that evolution results from the action of natural selection upon acquired characters
b. : the theory that evolutionary change is the direct product of the interaction of organism and environment — compare neo-darwinism