to come or bring to a later or more advanced or expanded stage; grow or cause to grow gradually - (transitive)
to elaborate or work out in detail to disclose or unfold (thoughts, a plot, etc) gradually or (of thoughts, etc) to be gradually disclosed or unfolded to come or bring into existence; generate or be generated: he developed a new faith in God - (intransitive) often followed by from:
to follow as a result (of); ensue (from): a row developed following the manager's remarks - (transitive)
to contract (a disease or illness) - (transitive)
to improve the value or change the use of (land), as by building - (transitive)
to exploit or make available the natural resources of (a country or region) - (transitive)
to treat (film, plate, or paper previously exposed to light, or the latent image in such material) with chemical solutions in order to produce a visible image to progress or cause to progress from simple to complex stages in the growth of an individual or the evolution of a species - (transitive)
to elaborate upon (a musical theme) by varying the melody, key, etc - (transitive)
to expand (a function or expression) in the form of a series - (transitive)
to project or roll out (a surface) onto a plane without stretching or shrinking any element to bring (a piece) into play from its initial position on the back rank
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025
de•vel•op•ing /dɪˈvɛləpɪŋ/USA pronunciation adj. [often: before a noun]
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025- considered to be lacking wealth or industry;
poor:The developing nations of the world were hit hardest by the rise in oil prices.
de•vel•op /dɪˈvɛləp/USA pronunciation
v.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025- to bring out the possibilities (of);
come or bring to a more advanced state: [no object]Her reading skills were developing at a rapid pace.[~ + object]new plans to develop natural resources. - to (cause to) grow or expand: [no object]Your biceps will develop quickly with that exercise.[~ + object]exercises to develop your biceps.
- to bring into being or activity;
produce:[~ + object]to develop new techniques. - to (cause to) come into an active state, such as by natural growth or internal processes: [no object]Cancer developed rapidly in the lab mice.[~ + object]He had begun to develop an allergy.
- to elaborate or expand in detail;
show in detail:[~ + object]began to gather facts to develop his theory. - to build on or improve (a piece of land), esp. so as to make more profitable:[~ + object]The builders are developing that part of town.
- to be made visible, clear, or easy to see;
become manifest: [no object]The plot develops slowly.[It + ~ + that clause]It developed that my client had an alibi for that night. - Photographyto immerse (film) in chemicals so that an image becomes visible: [no object]With this instant film, the picture develops in only one minute.[~ + object]How long will it take to develop these pictures?
- develop is a verb, development is a noun, developing and developed are adjectives:Learners want to develop good language skills. Their development was very slow. Developing countries are poor; developed countries are rich.
de•vel•op•ing
(di vel′ə ping),USA pronunciation adj.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025- undergoing development;
growing;
evolving. - (of a nation or geographical area) having a standard of living or level of industrial production well below that possible with financial or technical aid;
not yet highly industrialized.
- develop + -ing2 1765–75
de•vel•op
(di vel′əp),USA pronunciation v.t.
v.i.
de•vel′op•a•ble adj.
de•vel′op•a•bil′i•ty, n.
- to bring out the capabilities or possibilities of;
bring to a more advanced or effective state:to develop natural resources; to develop one's musical talent. - to cause to grow or expand:to develop one's muscles.
- to elaborate or expand in detail:to develop a theory.
- to bring into being or activity;
generate;
evolve. - [Drafting.]to transfer the details of (a more or less two-dimensional design, pattern, or the like) from one surface, esp. one that is prismatic or cylindrical, onto another, usually planar, in such a way that the distances between points remain the same.
- Developmental Biology[Biol.]
- to cause to go through the process of natural evolution from a previous and lower stage.
- to cause to progress from an embryonic to an adult form.
- Mathematicsto express in an extended form, as in a series.
- Music and Danceto unfold, by various technical means, the inherent possibilities of (a theme).
- [Photog.]
- Photographyto render visible (the latent image on an exposed film or the like).
- Photographyto treat (an exposed film or the like) with chemicals so as to render the latent image visible.
- Chessto bring (a piece) into effective play, esp. during the initial phase of a game when pieces are moved from their original position on the board:He developed his rook by castling.
- Miningto prepare (a new mine) for working by digging access openings and building necessary structures.
v.i.
- to grow into a more mature or advanced state;
advance;
expand:She is developing into a good reporter. - to come gradually into existence or operation;
be evolved. - to be disclosed;
become evident or manifest:The plot of the novel developed slowly. - Photographyto undergo developing, as a photographic film.
- Developmental Biology[Biol.]
- to progress from an embryonic to an adult form.
- to progress from earlier to later stages of ontogeny or phylogeny.
- to reach sexual maturity.
- Middle French développer, Old French desveloper, equivalent. to des- dis-1 + voloper to wrap up; see envelop
- 1585–95
de•vel′op•a•bil′i•ty, n.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::