# devolution

> English word · Noun · IPA /diːvəˈluːʃən/ · frequency rank #26,752

## Definitions
1. A rolling down.
2. A descent, especially one that passes through a series of revolutions, or by succession.
3. The transference of a right to a successor, or of a power from one body to another.
4. Degeneration.
5. The transfer of some powers and the delegation of some functions from a central government to local government (e.g. from the U.K. parliament to Scottish parliament and Welsh assembly).

## Etymology
Borrowed from Middle French dévolution, from Medieval Latin devolutio, devolutionis, from Latin devolvo.

## Easily confused with
- **devotion** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/devolution-vs-devotion)
- **demolition** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/demolition-vs-devolution)
- **desolation** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/desolation-vs-devolution)
- **devaluation** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/devaluation-vs-devolution)

## Common misspellings (15)
`ddevolution`, `deovlution`, `devloution`, `devollution`, `devoltuion`, `devoluiton`, `devolusion`, `devolutino`, `devolutionn`, `devolutoin`, `devoluttion`, `devoultion`, `devvolution`, `dveolution`, `edvolution`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/devolution