isotype

I. \\ˈ ̷ ̷ ̷ ̷ at iso-+ ˌtīp\ noun

Etymology: International Scientific Vocabulary is- + type

1.

a. : an animal or plant or group common to two or more countries or life regions

b.

(1) : paratype 1 — usually used in plant taxonomy

(2) : a type that is or is considered for technical purposes to be the duplicate of a holotype

2.

a. : a conventionalized pictographic symbol (as a drawing or outline or silhouette of a human figure or of a building or of a product) designed to represent (as by repetition or fractionalizing of each symbol or as by scaling each symbol to significantly the same size or to contrasted sizes) a fixed number or quantity of or other unitary fact about the thing symbolized

each isotype of a soldier in that diagram represents an entire army division

or designed to convey other information

public telephones often have a large isotype of a bell over the booths as a directional guide to the booths

and typically used in graphic statistical representations (as diagrams, charts)

b. : a graphic statistical representation (as a chart) that utilizes such isotypes

II. noun

: any of the categories of antibodies determined by their physicochemical properties (as molecular weight) and antigenic characteristics that occur in all individuals of a species — compare allotype herein idiotype herein

• isotypic adjective