tetrad

noun tet·rad \ˈte-ˌtrad\

Definition of TETRAD

: a group or arrangement of four: as

a : a group of four cells produced by the successive divisions of a mother cell <a tetrad of spores>

b : a group of four synapsed chromatids that become visibly evident in the pachytene stage of meiotic prophase

— te·trad·ic \te-ˈtra-dik\ adjective

Origin of TETRAD

Greek tetrad-, tetras, from tetra-

First Known Use: 1653

Rhymes with TETRAD

Akkad, aoudad, Baghdad, Belgrade, Carlsbad, caudad, comrade, Conrad, crash pad, crawdad, doodad, dorsad, dryad, dyad, egad, farad, Flagstad, footpad, gonad, granddad, heptad, horn-mad, ironclad, keypad, launchpad, maenad, monad, mouse pad, Murad, naiad, nicad, nomad, NORAD, notepad, pentad, pleiad, postgrad, scratch pad, Sinbad, touch pad, triclad

Medical Dictionary

tetrad

noun tet·rad \ˈte-ˌtrad\

Medical Definition of TETRAD

: a group or arrangement of four: as a : a tetravalent element, atom, or radical b : a group of four cells arranged usually in the form of a tetrahedron and produced by the successive divisions of a mother cell <a tetrad of spores> c : a group of four synapsed chromatids that become visibly evident in the pachytene stage of meiotic prophase and are produced by the longitudinal splitting of each of two paired homologous chromosomes