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
- nondeveloping adjective
- self-developing adjective
- undeveloping adjective
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.
Privately held Kelonia is developing a next-generation treatment for the blood cancer multiple myeloma.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 19, 2026
She argued that two-way collaboration was critical: if developing nations are to help destroy fraud networks, wealthier countries need to share their technical expertise and resources too.
From BBC • Apr. 18, 2026
A host of chip startups and larger tech firms are currently at work developing their own inference chips.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026
Research presented at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research indicates that non-smoking Americans under age 50 who follow healthier diets could face a higher risk of developing lung cancer.
From Science Daily • Apr. 17, 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.
