Dominant - GCSE Biology Definition

In GCSE Biology, the term 'dominant' refers to a type of gene that will always show its effect, even if there is only one copy of it. Genes come in pairs, and each pair contains one gene from each parent. If a gene is dominant, it will override the other gene in the pair, called the recessive gene. This means that the trait linked to the dominant gene will be visible in the organism. For example, if a plant has one dominant gene for tall height and one recessive gene for short height, the plant will be tall because the dominant gene takes charge.