secondary sex characteristic

secondary sex characteristic

n.

Any of various genetically transmitted physical or behavioral characteristics that appear in humans at puberty and in sexually mature animals and that differentiate between the sexes without having a direct reproductive function.

---

secondary sex characteristic

Any of the physical traits in a sexually mature animal that are specific to one sex but are not directly involved in the act of reproducing. Secondary sex characteristics are thought to have evolved to give an individual an advantage in mating by making the individual more attractive to mates or by allowing the individual to defeat rivals in competition for mates. Some secondary sex characteristics include the facial hair of the human male, the relatively prominent breasts of the human female, the antlers found only in the male of most species of deer, and the colorful plumage of the males of many species of birds. The appearance of secondary sex characteristics is determined by the sex hormones. See more at sexual selection.

Thesaurus

Noun

1.

secondary sex characteristic - the genetically determined sex characteristics that are not functionally necessary for reproduction (pitch of the voice and body hair and musculature) secondary sex character, secondary sexual characteristic sex character, sex characteristic, sexual characteristic - those characteristics (both anatomical and psychological) that are strongly associated with one sex relative to the other