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   evolution

   /ˌiːvəˈl(j)uːʃn/

   noun

   • 1. the process by which different kinds of living organism are believed to have developed from earlier forms during the history of the earth. Similar Darwinismnatural selection
   • 2. the gradual development of something: "the forms of written languages undergo constant evolution" Similar developmentadvancementgrowthriseprogressprogressionexpansionextensionunfoldingtransformationadaptationmodificationrevisionreworkingreconstructionrecastingchangehumorous:transmogrificationrare:evolvement
   • 3. the giving off of a gaseous product, or of heat: "the evolution of oxygen occurs rapidly in this process"
   • 4. a pattern of movements or manoeuvres: "flocks of waders often perform aerial evolutions"
   • 5. the extraction of a root from a given quantity. dated

   Word Origin early 17th century: from Latin evolutio(n-) ‘unrolling’, from the verb evolvere (see evolve). Early senses related to movement, first recorded in describing a ‘wheeling’ manoeuvre in the realignment of troops or ships. Current senses stem from a notion of ‘opening out’, giving rise to the sense ‘development’.

   Derivatives

   • 1. evolutive adjective

   Scrabble Points: 12

   • E

     1

   • V

     4

   • O

     1

   • L

     1

   • U

     1

   • T

     1

   • I

     1

   • O

     1

   • N

     1

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