What term describes the alternative forms of a gene?

The term that describes the alternative forms of a gene is alleles. Alleles are different versions of the same gene that may produce distinguishable traits or variations in a characteristic. For instance, a gene that determines flower color might have an allele for red flowers and another for white flowers. Each individual typically carries two alleles for each gene, one inherited from each parent, and these alleles can be identical or different.

Understanding alleles is crucial in genetics, as they play a key role in inheritance and variation among organisms. The presence of different alleles contributes to the diversity seen in traits within a population, which is foundational to the study of evolution and natural selection.