Question

phenotype is a way to describe the traits you can see. the genotype is like a recipe for a cake, while the phenotype is like the cake made from the recipe. the genotype expresses the phenotype. for example, the phenotypes of mendels pea plants were either tall or short, or they were purple - flowered or white - flowered.
can organisms with different genotypes have the same phenotypes? lets see.
what is the phenotype of a pea plant that is homozygous dominant (tt) for the tall trait? tall. what is the phenotype of a pea plant that is heterozygous (tt)? it is also tall. the answer is yes, two different genotypes can result in the same phenotype. remember, the recessive phenotype will be expressed only when the dominant allele is absent, or when an individual is homozygous recessive (tt) (figure below).
different genotypes (aa, aa, aa or tt, tt, tt) will lead to different phenotypes, or different appearances of the organism.
summary sentence:

• mendels hereditary \factors\ are variants of genes called alleles.
• genotype describes the combination of alleles that an individual has for a certain gene, while phenotype describes the traits that you can see.

adapted from ck - 12 watch the embedded video in the link below:
https://www.ck12.org/book/ck - 12 - life - science - concepts - for - middle - school/section/3.11/
based on the reading above, define the following vocabulary in your own words:
genotype
phenotype
homozygous
heterozygous
alleles
traits

Explanation:

• Genotype: The genetic makeup (allele combination) of an organism.
• Phenotype: The observable traits (like physical appearance) of an organism.
• Homozygous: Having two identical alleles for a gene (e.g., \(TT\) or \(tt\)).
• Heterozygous: Having two different alleles for a gene (e.g., \(Tt\)).
• Alleles: Variants of a gene (e.g., \(T\) and \(t\) for height).
• Traits: Characteristics (like tall or short) of an organism.

Answer:

• Genotype: The genetic combination of alleles in an organism.
• Phenotype: The observable characteristics of an organism.
• Homozygous: Having two same alleles for a gene.
• Heterozygous: Having two different alleles for a gene.
• Alleles: Different forms of a gene.
• Traits: Features or qualities of an organism.