evolutionist

[ ev-uh-loo-shuh-nist or, especially British, ee-vuh- ]

/ ˌɛv əˈlu ʃə nɪst or, especially British, ˌi və- /

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See synonyms for: evolutionism on Thesaurus.com

noun

a person who believes in or supports a theory of evolution, especially in biology.

a person who supports a policy of gradual growth or development rather than sudden change or expansion.

adjective Also ev·o·lu·tion·is·tic.

of or relating to evolution or evolutionists.

believing in or supporting a theory of evolution, especially in biology.

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Origin of evolutionist

First recorded in 1855–60; evolution + -ist

OTHER WORDS FROM evolutionist

ev·o·lu·tion·ism, nounev·o·lu·tion·is·ti·cal·ly, adverban·ti·ev·o·lu·tion·ist, noun, adjectivean·ti·ev·o·lu·tion·is·tic, adjective

non·ev·o·lu·tion·ist, nounpre·ev·o·lu·tion·ist, nounpro·ev·o·lu·tion·ist, adjective, noun

Words nearby evolutionist

evolutionary, evolutionary algorithm, evolutionary biology, evolutionary medicine, evolutionary psychology, evolutionist, evolutive, evolve, evonymus, EVOO, Evora

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use evolutionist in a sentence

Unlike Darwin, many evolutionists in the late 1800s and early 1900s had theorized that the human family tree was rooted in Asia.
The ultimate genealogical search hunts for our earliest ancestors|Erin Wayman|December 2, 2021|Science News For Students
Unlike Darwin, many evolutionists of the late 19th and early 20th centuries had theorized that the human family tree was rooted in Asia.
Fossils and ancient DNA paint a vibrant picture of human origins|Erin Wayman|September 15, 2021|Science News
Considering cultural change in this way has led cultural evolutionists to rely heavily on the subfield of population genetics—and to use models that assume cultural continuity works solely through inheritance.
What Misspellings Reveal About Cultural Evolution - Facts So Romantic|Helena Miton|July 30, 2021|Nautilus
I am a theist and an evolutionist, to be sure, but the combined term makes no sense to me.
Meet the Prizewinning Catholic Biologist Creationists Can’t Stand|Karl W. Giberson|April 6, 2014|DAILY BEAST

His wife was by his bedside every day, insisting they pray together, never mind that Ebert is an openly agnostic evolutionist.
The Resilient Roger Ebert|Gail Sheehy|January 22, 2011|DAILY BEAST
Such cases may be regarded by the evolutionist as exceptional, and he may invent some new hypothesis to account for them.
British Quarterly Review, American Edition, Volume LIV|Various
Favier himself, as will be seen, is an evolutionist after his own fashion, an evolutionist of a very daring type.
More Hunting Wasps|J. Henri Fabre
This principle the evolutionist applies to the whole universe which he says came in a similar way.
The Other Side of Evolution|Alexander Patterson
All these have been in turn combatted by other evolutionist writers, and the war goes on and has produced libraries of volumes.
The Other Side of Evolution|Alexander Patterson
Prof. Conn, an evolutionist, admits the presence of many facts disclosed by geology which oppose the theory of Evolution.
The Other Side of Evolution|Alexander Patterson

British Dictionary definitions for evolutionist

evolutionist

/ (ˌiːvəˈluːʃənɪst) /

noun

a person who believes in a theory of evolution, esp Darwin's theory of the evolution of plant and animal species

adjective

of or relating to a theory of evolution

Derived forms of evolutionist

evolutionism, nounevolutionistic, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012