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medium difficulty5 min

Binomial Nomenclature

Binomial nomenclature is the scientific naming system in which each organism is given a two-part name: genus name followed by species name.

In one line: Two-name rule: Genus Capital, species small.

Concept Practice Coming Soon

Understand it

  • This system was popularised by Linnaeus and helps avoid confusion caused by different local names.
  • The genus name begins with a capital letter, while the species name begins with a small letter.
  • The name is printed in italics or underlined separately when handwritten.
  • The words are usually Latin or Latinised.

Example

The scientific name of humans is Homo sapiens, where Homo is the genus and sapiens is the species.

Rule to remember

Scientific name format: Genus species; genus starts with capital letter, species starts with small letter, and both are italicised or underlined separately.

See it worked out

Follow the example line by line, then use the same method on new questions.

Worked example

  1. 1For Mangifera indica, write Mangifera as genus and indica as species.
  2. 2In handwriting, underline Mangifera and indica separately.

Method you can reuse

Write the genus first with capital initial, write species second in lowercase, use italics in print or separate underlines in handwriting, and avoid local-language naming.

Visual tip

A naming card can show Common name: human; Scientific name: Homo sapiens; Genus: Homo; Species: sapiens.

Check yourself

Answer the question in your head before opening the answer.

Try it yourself

Why is Homo sapiens a better exam answer than only writing 'human'?

Think first, then show answer
Homo sapiens is a scientific name with genus and species, so it is standard and avoids confusion from different common names.

Common wrong answer

Writing Homo Sapiens.

Why it loses marks: The species part should begin with a small letter.

Don't mix this up

Students often capitalise both words or forget to underline the two words separately in handwritten answers.

Exam tip

Write genus first, species second, capitalise only the genus, and underline both words separately if writing by hand.

Write it in the exam

Each point is worth about one mark. Write point 1 for a 1-mark question and keep adding points as the marks go up.

How CBSE asks it

Exams may ask rules of binomial nomenclature, identify genus/species, or correct the formatting of a scientific name.
  1. 1

    Enough for 1 mark

    Binomial nomenclature is the scientific naming system in which each organism is given a two-part name: genus name followed by species name.

  2. 2

    Add for 2 marks

    Example: The scientific name of humans is Homo sapiens, where Homo is the genus and sapiens is the species.

  3. 3

    Add for 3 marks

    This system was popularised by Linnaeus and helps avoid confusion caused by different local names.

Practice

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