assortative
adjective
as·sor·ta·tive
ə-ˈsȯr-tə-tiv 
: being nonrandom mating based on like or unlike characteristics
Examples of assortative in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
This pattern, called assortative mating, means that when parents with overlapping genetic risks have children, those risks can combine and accumulate.
—
Santhosh Girirajan,
The Conversation,
7 Oct. 2025
These assortative alliances will be fully voluntarist—to be joined and abandoned as one pleases.
—
Gideon Lewis-Kraus,
The New Yorker,
21 Oct. 2024
But cross-trait assortative mating challenges such inferences.
—
Grace Huckins,
WIRED,
12 Dec. 2022
Opposing forces influence assortative mating so that one seeks a similar mate while at the same time avoiding inbreeding with close relatives.
—
Seriously Science,
Discover Magazine,
24 July 2013
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Santhosh Girirajan,
The Conversation,
7 Oct. 2025
These assortative alliances will be fully voluntarist—to be joined and abandoned as one pleases.
—
Gideon Lewis-Kraus,
The New Yorker,
21 Oct. 2024
But cross-trait assortative mating challenges such inferences.
—
Grace Huckins,
WIRED,
12 Dec. 2022
Opposing forces influence assortative mating so that one seeks a similar mate while at the same time avoiding inbreeding with close relatives.
—
Seriously Science,
Discover Magazine,
24 July 2013
Cite this Entry
“Assortative.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/assortative. Accessed 5 Jul. 2026.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
assortative
adjective
as·sor·ta·tive
ə-ˈsȯrt-ət-iv
: being nonrandom mating based on like or unlike characteristics
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