evolve
verb (used with object)
to develop gradually.
had been evolving
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past perfect progressiveof evolve.past perfect progressive
Used to describe an action that was ongoing continuously in the past up until another past event interrupted it.
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.
Still, by looking at that virus’s genetic sequence, it may be possible to tell whether a progenitor of the pandemic virus had been evolving in an animal host, Crits-Cristoph says.
From Scientific American ● Apr. 12, 2023
Durbin: You also had a shift that wasn’t a significant shift because it had been evolving throughout the ’80s, but a shift over more and more toward cable television.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 8, 2022
In the postwar era of White flight, however, the Supreme Court had been evolving into a more progressive force in the promotion and preservation of civil rights.
From Textbooks ● Jul. 28, 2021
The downtown had been evolving as young parents moved back to Wisconsin from Minneapolis and Chicago.
From Washington Times ● Sep. 16, 2020
As the twentieth century progressed, developments in computing and interpersonal communications technology, which had been evolving somewhat independently, began to converge.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
