Recessive Trait
A recessive trait is the trait that appears only when both alleles are recessive.
Practice This ConceptMain explanation
Teacher explanation
A recessive trait stays hidden when a dominant allele is present. It becomes visible only in a homozygous recessive condition, such as tt in many textbook examples. This is why recessive traits may skip a generation and then appear again when the right combination is present.
Example
In pea plants, short stem height is recessive. A plant with genotype tt will be short, while Tt will still be tall if tallness is dominant.
Simple analogy
Recessive means two copies are needed.
Common confusion
Students often think recessive means weak or rare in every case. That is not correct; recessive means it shows only when both alleles are recessive.
Exam tip
If the question mentions a recessive trait, check whether both alleles must be the same small letter before deciding the phenotype.
Answer writing and exam use
1-mark use
Write the exact meaning of recessive trait in one clean line.
2-mark use
Define recessive trait and add one example or condition.
3-mark use
Explain recessive trait, show the method or example, and mention the common mistake.
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