Darwinian

American  

[dahr-win-ee-uhn] / dɑrˈwɪn i ən /

adjective

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

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noun

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

Darwinian British  

/ dɑːˈwɪnɪən /

adjective

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

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noun

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

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

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

Etymology

Origin of Darwinian

First recorded in 1855–60; Darwin + -ian

Example Sentences

It’s clear why a builder might want to sort gravel by size, but how does nature decide which features to select in Darwinian evolution?

From The Wall Street Journal • May 15, 2026

"The world has become very Darwinian again," he warned.

From Barron's • Jan. 23, 2026

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

From BBC • Oct. 8, 2025

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.

From Salon • May 9, 2025

For me, school had been a Darwinian exercise.

From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline