Question

How do you express the meanings of words like race, breed, cultivars or variety?

Answer 1

Hint: We have devised several ways to differentiate between different species, different communities, and different kinds of plants and animals. Some of these are scientific methods, while others are strictly layman’s terms and have no scientific basis.

Complete answer:
Race is used anthropologically to indicate physical and often social differences between groups of people. No matter how many races we may divide people into, taxonomically we are all the exact same species and these differences are superficial.
Cultivar is a term used to classify cultivated plants. These are differences that have been produced selectively in breeding plants so that particular characteristics can be selectively propagated. An example of cultivars is the seedless watermelons available today unlike the natural fruit which have a number of seeds.

Breed is used to refer to domestic animals which are homogeneous in appearance with distinctive physical features and economically beneficial characteristics as well. These may be natural, but many breeds are a result of careful selection. For instance, dog breeds like pugs and dachshunds.
Variety is another term used mainly in botany to divide plants at the sub specific level. They may have a few visible differences, which are heritable, but these are minor in terms of the genetics of the plants. Varieties can interbreed.

Note: Cultivar and breed are used to classify plants and animals depending on characteristics they have been artificially selected for. Race and variety differentiate animals and plants on minor points and all are in the same species.