DEVOLVE


Meaning of DEVOLVE in English

transcription, транскрипция: [ di-ˈvälv, -ˈvȯlv, dē- ]

verb

( de·volved ; de·volv·ing )

Etymology: Middle English, from Latin devolvere, from de- + volvere to roll — more at voluble

Date: 15th century

transitive verb

: to pass on (as responsibility, rights, or powers) from one person or entity to another

devolving to western Europe full responsibility for its own defense — Christopher Lane

intransitive verb

1.

a. : to pass by transmission or succession

the estate devolved on a distant cousin

b. : to fall or be passed usually as a responsibility or obligation

the responsibility for breadwinning has devolved increasingly upon women — Barbara Ehrenreich

2. : to come by or as if by flowing down

his allegedly subversive campaigns… devolve from his belief in basic American rights — Frank Deford

3. : to degenerate through a gradual change or evolution

where order devolve s into chaos — Johns Hopkins Magazine

Merriam-Webster's Collegiate English vocabulary.      Энциклопедический словарь английского языка Merriam Webster.