Darwinian

[dahr-win-ee-uhn]

adjective

1. (sometimes lowercase),  pertaining to Charles Darwin or his doctrines.

noun

1. a follower of Charles Darwin; a person who accepts or advocates Darwinism.

Darwinian

/ dɑːˈwɪnɪən /

adjective

1. of or relating to Charles Darwin or his theory of evolution by natural selection

noun

1. a person who accepts, supports, or uses this theory

Other Word Forms

• anti-Darwinian noun
• non-Darwinian adjective
• post-Darwinian adjective
• pre-Darwinian adjective
• pro-Darwinian adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of Darwinian¹

First recorded in 1855–60; Darwin + -ian

Example Sentences

Sacks, a libertarian who extols the virtues of a Darwinian free market, is riding high off the AI world’s embrace of the president’s policies.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

What I've noticed this week is there's a Darwinian selection about the people who have come to the conference in Manchester.

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“Survivor” bowed for the first time before 9/11 and established itself as a Darwinian experiment with the motto “Outwit, Outplay, Outlast.”

Read more on Salon

The pain Deborah inflicts on Ava is at once very personal and notoriously endemic to the entertainment business, a Darwinian factory that demands round-the-clock creative labor.

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He has warned that European carmakers are in a "Darwinian" struggle with their Chinese rivals, something that is likely to have social consequences as they pare back costs in an effort to compete.

Read more on BBC