Dictionary
at•a•vism
Pronunciation: (at'u-viz"um), [key]—
n.
1. Biol.
a. the reappearance in an individual of characteristics of some remote ancestor that have been absent in intervening generations.
b. an individual embodying such a reversion.
2. reversion to an earlier type; throwback.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.