mating

adj, noun — 3 senses

mating

adj

/ˈmeɪtɪŋ/

1

Fitting into or onto a corresponding part, as a matched plug and socket.

Derived terms: postmating, premating

mating

noun

1

Biology, Natural sciences, Zoology Pairing of organisms for copulation.

The progeny of backcrosses and intercrosses will form some incrosses and some matings of other types.1981, Henry Foster, The Mouse in Biomedical Research, page 96:

2

Biology, Natural sciences, Zoology Sexual union; copulation.

Earless ghost swift moths become “invisible” to echolocating bats by forming mating clusters close (less than half a meter) above vegetation and effectively blending into the clutter of echoes that the bat receives from the leaves and stems around them.2013 May-June, William E. Conner, “An Acoustic Arms Race”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 3, pages 206–7:

Synonyms: pairing
Derived terms: assortative mating, mating bite, mating call, mating mark, mating press, mating season, mating strategy, positive assortative mating, postmating, premating

Entry derived from the Wiktionary, under licence CC BY-SA 4.0 — list of authors.