n., pl., -ses (-sēz).
The side-by-side association of homologous paternal and maternal chromosomes during the first prophase of meiosis.
[New Latin, from Greek sunapsis, point of contact. See synapse.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
