Explanation

Heterozygous means an organism has two different alleles for the same gene. One allele comes from the mother and a different allele comes from the father. For example, a plant might have one allele for tall height and one for short height.

Homozygous means both alleles are the same, like two alleles for tall or two for short. Dominant and recessive describe how alleles behave, not the combination itself. A heterozygous organism has one dominant and one recessive allele.

In heterozygous organisms, usually only the dominant trait shows in physical appearance. The recessive trait is hidden but still present in the genes. This hidden trait can appear in future generations if passed to offspring.