What term describes the genetic makeup of an organism?

The term that describes the genetic makeup of an organism is "genotype." The genotype encompasses all the genetic information inherited from the organism's parents, which is coded in the organism's DNA. It determines an organism's potential traits and characteristics, although the actual expression of these traits is influenced by environmental factors and is referred to as the phenotype.

To clarify further, the other terms have specific meanings that differentiate them from "genotype." The "genome" refers to the complete set of DNA, including all of its genes and non-coding sequences, within an organism. "Phenotype," on the other hand, is the observable physical and physiological traits of an organism, which result from the interaction between its genotype and the environment. "Allele" refers to one of the different forms of a gene that can exist at a specific locus on a chromosome. Understanding these distinctions highlights why "genotype" is the correct term for referring to the genetic makeup of an organism.