Meaning & use
Bivalent
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Having two values, components, or valencies; in chemistry, capable of combining with two atoms of hydrogen, and in genetics, describing a paired structure of chromosomes.
See it in a sentence
Oxygen is a bivalent element in most of its common compounds.
During meiosis, homologous chromosomes form a bivalent before separating.
A note on using this word
Built from the Latin prefix 'bi-' (two) and 'valens' (having power), paralleling terms like 'trivalent' and 'univalent' in chemistry.
Words with a similar meaning
divalent
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