Punnett Square

Definition

A Punnett Square is a diagram used in genetics to predict the possible genetic outcomes of offspring from two parents.

Analogy

Think of a Punnett Square like a game of tic-tac-toe. Each parent contributes one set of letters (or genes) and you fill in the squares based on those combinations. Just like in tic-tac-toe, each square represents a potential outcome - but instead of winning or losing, we're predicting the genetic traits of an offspring!

Related terms

Genotype: The genetic makeup or set of genes in our DNA which determine various characteristics and traits.

Phenotype: The physical expression or characteristics of that genotype. It's what you see, such as hair color, eye color etc.

Allele: One version of a gene at a specific locus on a chromosome. For example, if there's a gene for eye color, blue eyes might be one allele and brown eyes could be another.