Definition

1. Noun:
   • The biological process by which new individual organisms are generated from their parents: This is the fundamental process of life, ensuring the continuation of species.
   • The act or process of making a copy or duplicate of something: This refers to the duplication of an object, image, sound, or piece of information.
   • A copy or duplicate of an original item: This is the product of the copying process, such as a printed photograph or a digital file.

Examples of Usage

• Noun (Biological Process):

  • Sexual reproduction involves the combination of genetic material from two parents.
  • The reproduction of bacteria through cell division is very rapid.

• Noun (Act of Copying):

  • The museum prohibited the reproduction of the ancient manuscript.
  • High-fidelity sound reproduction is a key goal for audio engineers.

• Noun (A Copy Itself):

  • This painting is a modern reproduction of a famous Renaissance work.
  • The document you have is a color reproduction of the original black-and-white treaty.

Advanced Usage

• "Reproduction of": The act of copying or recreating a specific thing.

  • The artist focused on the accurate reproduction of light and shadow in her paintings.

• "Reproduction rights": The legal permissions granted to copy and distribute a work.

  • The publisher secured the reproduction rights for the author's photographs.

• In a social/economic context: Can refer to the perpetuation of social structures or conditions.

  • The education system can contribute to the reproduction of social inequality.

Variants and Related Words

• Reproduce (verb): To produce offspring or to make a copy of something.

  • Some plants can reproduce without seeds.
  • The machine can reproduce documents in seconds.

• Reproductive (adjective): Relating to the biological process of generating offspring.

  • The study focused on the reproductive health of the population.

• Reproducibility (noun): The ability of an experiment or study to be duplicated with the same results.

  • Scientific findings require a high degree of reproducibility.

Synonyms

• Biological sense: Procreation, breeding, generation.
• Copying sense: Replication, duplication, copying, facsimile.

Related Phrases

• Asexual reproduction: A mode of reproduction that does not involve the fusion of gametes, resulting in offspring genetically identical to the parent.

  • Many plants and simple organisms use asexual reproduction.

• Sexual reproduction: A mode of reproduction involving the fusion of male and female gametes, resulting in genetically diverse offspring.

  • Most animals rely on sexual reproduction.

Related Idioms

• "A poor reproduction": A copy that is of low quality or inaccurate.
  • The poster was a poor reproduction, with all the colors looking washed out.

Noun

1. the sexual activity of conceiving and bearing offspring
2. the act of making copies
   • Gutenberg's reproduction of holy texts was far more efficient
3. copy that is not the original; something that has been copied
4. recall that is hypothesized to work by storing the original stimulus input and reproducing it during recall
5. the process of generating offspring