Explore Words Kanji Grammar Guides

Copyright © 2026 Kotomora. All Rights Reserved.

Get the Kotomora apps for iOS and Android.

Explore Words Kanji Grammar Guides About Support Privacy

Copyright © 2026 Kotomora. All Rights Reserved.

還元分裂 (kangenbunretsu) Japanese meaning: meiosis | Kotomora

還かん元げん分ぶん裂れつ

か

ん

げ

ん

ぶ

ん

れ

つ

Meanings

1

rare term

Rare biological term for the cell division process that reduces chromosome number by half; synonymous with the more common 減数分裂.

See also: 減数分裂

還かん元げん分ぶん裂れつは配

はい

偶ぐう

子し

形けい

成せい

の

際さい

に

起お

こる

。

Meiosis occurs during gamete formation.

Kanji

還send back, return
元beginning, former time, origin
分part, minute of time, segment
裂split, rend, tear

Related words

減げん数すう分ぶん裂れつ
減数分裂 is the standard modern term for meiosis; 還元分裂 is a rare synonym used mainly in older or specialized biological texts.

Built from

還かん元げん+分ぶん裂れつ

Etymology

Compound of 還元 (reduction, return to origin) and 分裂 (division, splitting), describing the reduction of chromosome number during meiosis. The exact origin of the term is uncertain, but it likely arose in early Japanese biological terminology.