Nature Vs. Nurture Vocabulary

nature (nature vs. nurture) Definition: your genetic traits Sentence: Some scientists say that you are shaped by nature, or the traits you received from your parents. father son

nurture (nature vs. nurture) Definition: the environment that you are raised in Sentence: Some scientists say that you are shaped by nurture, or the way your environment effects you.

breeder Definition: someone who raises animals so that they can reproduce Sentence: We purchased our puppy from a dog breeder.

chromosomes Definition: the part of a cell that contains your genes Sentence: Humans have a total of 46 chromosomes in each of their cells!

sound Definition: a narrow area of water that connects two larger areas of water Sentence: The spill from the Exxon Valdez oil tanker had harmful effects on Prince William Sound.

identical (identical twins) Definition: twins that look the same because they receive the same genes from their parents Sentence: It is difficult to tell my neighbors apart because they are identical twins.

vulnerable Definition: easily harmed or affected by something Sentence: Building a tower of cards on a wobbly table will make it very vulnerable.

poaching Definition: illegally hunting, killing, or capturing wild animals Sentence: Poaching of black rhinos led the species to extinction.

siblings Definition: brothers or sisters who share the same parents Sentence: My siblings and I all have our father’s hair color.

fraternal (fraternal twins) Definition: twins who receive different genes from each parent Sentence: My cousins are fraternal twins. One is a girl and the other is a boy.

devastate Definition: to be very badly or completely damaged Sentence: The flood devastated our street.

vengeance Definition: with great force or more effect than before Sentence: At first it was just a light rain, but the next day the clouds came back with a vengeance.

grim Definition: very serious, bad, unpleasant Sentence: When he lost his job, his future looked grim.

exacerbated Definition: to make a bad situation worse Sentence: Having a fear of heights only exacerbated the already bad situation.

virtual (virtual twins) Definition: twins who are the same age, live in the same house, but are not genetically related Sentence: Scientists study virtual twins because they share the same environment.

litter Definition: a group of young Sentence: There were 11 puppies in the litter of golden retrievers.

squelch Definition: to stop something from continuing to develop or spread Sentence: Due to a lack of wide life protection, the effects of poaching are hard to squelch.

genes Definition: traits that will determine what a person looks and acts like Sentence: Musical talent is in my genes.

DNA Definition: a substance that makes each person unique, DNA caries genetic material. Sentence: Scientists look for DNA samples at crimes scenes to solve the case. DNA

matriarch Definition: a woman who is the leader of a family or group Sentence: When the matriarch of the orca pod died, many whales left to join a new pod.