homologous

C2 Topic:Science & Research
US /həˈmɒləɡəs/ UK /həˈmɒləɡəs/
adj Freq #238852

Meanings

  1. 1
    adj

    similar in position, structure, or origin, especially because of shared ancestry

    A bat wing and a human arm are homologous structures.

  2. 2
    adj

    showing a close correspondence or similarity

    The two legal systems have homologous institutions.

Thesaurus

Synonyms
1 adj · similar in position,... correspondingequivalent
2 adj · showing a close... analogousparallel
More similar
Opposites
heterologousunrelated
Word family
Derived forms homologouslyhomologyhomologuenonhomologous
Related forms homologyanalogyanalogous

Etymology

From Greek homologos, "agreeing," built from homos, "same," and logos, "word, account, relation." Biology narrowed it to structures sharing evolutionary origin.

Topics

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