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saltationism

[ sal-tey-shuh-niz-uhm ]

noun

, Biology.
  1. any of several theories holding that the evolution of species proceeds in major steps by the abrupt transformation of an ancestral species into a descendant species of a different type, rather than by the gradual accumulation of small changes.


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Other Words From

  • sal·tation·ist noun
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Word History and Origins

Origin of saltationism1

First recorded in 1970–75; saltation + -ism

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saltationsaltatorial