Main Entry:

de·volve

Pronunciation:

\di-ˈvälv, -ˈvȯlv, dē-\

Function:

verb

Inflected Form(s):

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 verb1 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 devolves into chaos — Johns Hopkins Magazine>