What is the term for an organism's genetic makeup?

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The term for an organism's genetic makeup is genotype. The genotype refers to the specific set of genes an organism carries, which can influence its traits and characteristics. It is composed of the alleles inherited from both parents, which can be either homozygous (both alleles are the same) or heterozygous (the alleles are different).

In contrast, the phenotype is the observable characteristics or traits of an organism, which are influenced by both the genotype and environmental factors. The karyotype refers to the number and appearance of chromosomes in the nucleus of a cell, providing information about chromosomal abnormalities but not directly describing the genetic makeup related to specific traits. An allele is a specific variant of a gene located at a particular position on a chromosome and is a component of the genotype. Thus, the term that specifically encapsulates the entire genetic composition of an organism is indeed genotype.