- present participle of develop.
developing
Americanadjective
-
undergoing development; growing; evolving.
-
(of a nation or geographical area) having a standard of living or level of industrial production well below that possible with financial or technical aid; not yet highly industrialized.
the developing world.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of developing
Explanation
Use the adjective developing to describe a country that's relatively poor and has a lower standard of living than most other countries in the world. There's not a specific standard for calling a country developing, but there are some societies that most of the world agrees are less industrialized than most. Developing countries generally have poorer people and a less vibrant economy than more developed countries. Some countries object to being called developing, since it implies that all countries want to become "developed," or more Western in their economy and government, which is not necessarily true.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Using AI to compress drug discovery from years to as little as nine months, it is developing products catering to the local market but that are more novel than what homegrown firms can offer.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 26, 2026
They may also have greater optimism than others do that SpaceX can achieve its goals, which include sending rockets to Mars and developing into an artificial-intelligence powerhouse.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 26, 2026
They’d listed the fuels, technologies and conservation approaches that would lead to lower emissions, including manufacturing cars that get 60 mpg, expanding wind and solar power, regrowing forests and developing hydrogen-based fuels.
From Salon • Jun. 26, 2026
While Quaise is planning to use some conventional drilling at the project site it's developing in Oregon, Kelso says that conventional drills start to break down more quickly when it reaches very hard rock.
From BBC • Jun. 25, 2026
The beach was on an island where an evil mad scientist was developing a laser beam that could blast satellites out of the sky.
From "Dog Squad" by Chris Grabenstein
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
