development

[dih-vel-uhp-muhnt]

noun

1. the act or process of developing; growth; progress.

   child development; economic development.

   Synonyms: maturation, opening, evolution, growth, elaboration, expansion
   Antonyms: disintegration, deterioration

2. a significant consequence or event.

   recent developments in the field of science.

3. a developed or advanced state or form.

   Drama reached its highest development in the plays of Shakespeare.

   Synonyms: ripeness, maturity

4. Music.,  the part of a movement or composition in which a theme or themes are developed, or unfolded and elaborated, by various technical means, so as to reveal their inherent possibilities.

5. a large group of private houses or of apartment houses, often of similar design, constructed as a unified community, especially by a real-estate developer or government organization.

   Synonyms: subdivision, community

6. Chess.,  the act or process of developing chess pieces.

7. Mining.,  the work of digging openings, as tunnels, raises, and winzes, to give access to new workings, and of erecting necessary structures.

development

/ dɪˈvɛləpmənt /

noun

1. the act or process of growing, progressing, or developing

2. the product or result of developing

3. a fact, event, or happening, esp one that changes a situation

4. an area or tract of land that has been developed

5. Also called: development section. the section of a movement, usually in sonata form, in which the basic musical themes are developed

6. chess

   1. the process of developing pieces

   2. the manner in which they are developed

   3. the position of the pieces in the early part of a game with reference to their attacking potential or defensive efficiency

Other Word Forms

• developmental adjective
• developmentally adverb
• developmentary adjective
• antidevelopment adjective
• hyperdevelopment noun
• hyperdevelopmental adjective
• nondevelopment noun
• nondevelopmental adjective
• nondevelopmentally adverb
• postdevelopmental adjective
• predevelopment noun
• self-development noun
• subdevelopment noun
• superdevelopment noun
• undevelopment noun
• undevelopmental adjective
• undevelopmentally adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of development¹

First recorded in 1745–55; develop + -ment, or from French développement

Example Sentences

“It’s the development question, the densification question, the gentrification question.”

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

"If you want to install any technology investment like AI data centres, keep in mind hydroelectric power is both renewable and steady," says Paraguayan software development entrepreneur Sebastian Ortiz-Chamorro.

Read more on BBC

Billions of years ago, life apparently benefited from the magnetic shield, which blocked harmful radiation from space, making its development possible in the first place.

Read more on Science Daily

Chau, whose toy manufacturing company is called GSNMC, said his customers were shocked by the latest turn and monitoring developments to see if production will need to be paused.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

During a trip to the team’s Arizona training complex in the following days, Sasaki met with Hill and his pitching development staff, spending several hours reviewing video of his throw.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• advancement 
• evolution 
• expansion 
• improvement 
• increase 
• progress