evolutionary

C1 Topic:Describing Qualities

US /ˌiː.vəˈluː.ʃən.ɛɹ.i/ UK /ˌiː.vəˈl(j)uː.ʃən.ɹi/ See IPA manual

Freq #14124

Meanings

1

adj
Relating to the gradual development of living things over time.

The whale's evolutionary history includes land-dwelling ancestors.
2

adj
Happening through slow, gradual change rather than sudden change.

The company favored an evolutionary approach to redesigning its products.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

evolutional

Opposites

non-evolutionalnon-evolutionarynonevolutionalnonevolutionary

Word family

Forms evolutionarierevolutionariest

Derived forms anti-evolutionaryantievolutionarybioevolutionaryco-evolutionarycoevolutionaryeco-evolutionaryecoevolutionaryevilutionaryevolutionarilymacro-evolutionarymacroevolutionarymesoevolutionary

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

evolutionary trend
a broad direction of change in the development of living organisms

Adjective + noun

Etymology

From evolution + -ary.

Topics

Describing Qualities Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

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