/heuh red"i tee/ , n. , pl. heredities . Biol.
1. the transmission of genetic characters from parents to offspring: it is dependent upon the segregation and recombination of genes during meiosis and fertilization and results in the genesis of a new individual similar to others of its kind but exhibiting certain variations resulting from the particular mix of genes and their interactions with the environment.
2. the genetic characters so transmitted. Cf. congenital .
[ 1530-40; heredite hereditat- (s. of hereditas ) inheritance, equiv. to hered- (s. of heres ) HEIR + -itat- -ITY ]