as in deteriorated
to become worse or of less value
the once-lovely neighborhood has devolved into a squalid slum
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Recent Examples of devolved
Negotiations quickly devolved as some protesters occupied a university building before administrators requested police enter campus and conduct mass arrests.
—
Eduardo Cuevas, USA TODAY, 12 Mar. 2025
But their picture-perfect romance quickly devolved, with his erectile dysfunction and her fertility issues driving them apart.
—John Russell, People.com, 11 Mar. 2025
That year, the city had devolved into a gang war with multiple shootings related to gang violence, according to multiple reports.
—Jackson Thompson, Fox News, 8 Mar. 2025
The meeting devolved into a shouting match with Zelenskyy's team being asked to leave the White House afterwards.
—David Brennan, ABC News, 5 Mar. 2025
Isolationism as a slur In the postwar era, isolationism devolved from a coherent strategic perspective into a term of political derision.
—Andrew Latham, The Conversation, 3 Mar. 2025
In all the above cases of viral wedding drama, the stories eventually devolved into picking sides based on assumptions behind their choices.
—Ct Jones, Rolling Stone, 2 Mar. 2025
In recent years, the All-Star Game has devolved into a comedy of pickup basketball in the worst way.
—Danny Emerman, The Mercury News, 14 Feb. 2025
Chargers-Texans devolved into a blowout, but Los Angeles was actually controlling the game flow for much of the first half.
—Steven Louis Goldstein, The Athletic, 13 Feb. 2025
Eduardo Cuevas, USA TODAY, 12 Mar. 2025
But their picture-perfect romance quickly devolved, with his erectile dysfunction and her fertility issues driving them apart.
—John Russell, People.com, 11 Mar. 2025
That year, the city had devolved into a gang war with multiple shootings related to gang violence, according to multiple reports.
—Jackson Thompson, Fox News, 8 Mar. 2025
The meeting devolved into a shouting match with Zelenskyy's team being asked to leave the White House afterwards.
—David Brennan, ABC News, 5 Mar. 2025
Isolationism as a slur In the postwar era, isolationism devolved from a coherent strategic perspective into a term of political derision.
—Andrew Latham, The Conversation, 3 Mar. 2025
In all the above cases of viral wedding drama, the stories eventually devolved into picking sides based on assumptions behind their choices.
—Ct Jones, Rolling Stone, 2 Mar. 2025
In recent years, the All-Star Game has devolved into a comedy of pickup basketball in the worst way.
—Danny Emerman, The Mercury News, 14 Feb. 2025
Chargers-Texans devolved into a blowout, but Los Angeles was actually controlling the game flow for much of the first half.
—Steven Louis Goldstein, The Athletic, 13 Feb. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for devolved
Verb
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Once strong regional partners, ties between Israel and Turkey have long been frosty and deteriorated further over the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.—
Andrew Wilks,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Apr. 2025
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During the administrative hearing this week, economist David Appel called the California market unsustainable and said it’s deteriorated dramatically.—
Dawn Giel,Contessa Brewer,
CNBC,
10 Apr. 2025
Verb
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Monday Night Raw's main event steel cage match between Rollins and CM Punk descended into chaos with the unexpected return of Roman Reigns.—
Faisal Kutty,
Newsweek,
11 Mar. 2025
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Syria has seen the worst outbreak of violence since the ousting of former President Bashar al-Assad late last year, after armed men descended on Alawite heartlands on Thursday in what Syrian authorities said was an attempt to put down an insurgency by rebels still loyal to the former government.—
Tricia Escobedo,
CNN,
10 Mar. 2025
Verb
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The rest of the batting order crumbled as sure as night follows day.—
Tim Ellis,
Forbes,
31 Dec. 2024
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But Indianapolis’ defense crumbled on the ensuing drive, allowing Lock to lead a nine-play, 70-yard TD drive capped by his 5-yard scramble into the end zone.—
James Boyd,
The Athletic,
29 Dec. 2024
Verb
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However, wider market fundamentals have not materially altered and have somewhat worsened.—
Gaurav Sharma,
Forbes,
22 Dec. 2024
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While Ireland's housing crisis has now been ongoing for about a decade, the problem is said to have worsened in recent years, as construction has dramatically lagged behind demand and migration to the country has increased requests for more homes.—
Benedict Cosgrove,
Newsweek,
20 Dec. 2024
Verb
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The average grade of ore has also diminished by around 40% since 1991, BHP says.—
Scott Neuman,
NPR,
16 Mar. 2025
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The appetite of high street banks for lending has diminished, and investors are now much more focused on profitability and a clear understanding of runway rather than just fueling growth at any cost.—
Paul Klein,
Forbes,
15 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Devolved.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/devolved. Accessed 22 Jul. 2025.
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