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Definition

noun

(1) The principle stating that life arises from pre-existing life, not from nonliving material.

(2) Recapitulation theory: the theory formulated by E.H. Haeckel in which the individuals in their embryonic development pass through stages analogous in general structural plan to the stages their species passed through in its evolution; the theory in which ontogeny is an abridged recapitulation of phylogeny.

Supplement

The theory has been discredited in time when modern science and genetics have raised doubt its validity.

Synonyms:

• biogenetic law
• Haeckel's theory
• embryonic recapitulation
• recapitulation theory