English Word Reference Free

evolve

Definition, pronunciation, etymology, and usage for the English word. Free spelling reference powered by Wiktionary.

Letters

6 characters

Language

English

word origin

Source

Wiktionary

open dictionary

Access

Free

no sign-up needed

Detailed reference entry for the English word "evolve", 6-letters, with pronunciation in International Phonetic Alphabet notation, etymology traced through Germanic and Romance roots where applicable, common misspelling variants catalogued from Hunspell error dictionaries, and usage frequency ranked against the top 100,000 English words in the Wordfreq corpus. PlainSpell covers English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German spelling with confusable-pair detection that highlights visually and phonetically similar words. This entry for "evolve" includes synonyms, antonyms, homophones, and cross-language translation pointers sourced from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org extract. Whether you are verifying the correct spelling of "evolve" for academic writing, checking homophone confusion, or exploring etymological origins, this page provides a citation-backed, free reference that requires no sign-up.

evolve is aEnglishverb. It means: To move (something) in regular procession through a system. Pronounced /ɪˈvɒlv/. It ranks #9,604 in English word frequency. Often confused with evoke.

Key facts for evolve
PropertyValue
Headwordevolve
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ɪˈvɒlv/
Letters6
Frequency rank#9,604
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency rank visualization

Position of evolve in English word frequency (lower rank = more common)

Source: Wordfreq corpus

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for evolve is 6 letters long, classified as averb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ɪˈvɒlv/. Corpus data places it at rank #9,604 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text.Wiktionary records 10 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our Hunspell-derived misspelling index lists 8 documented wrong-spelling variants for evolve, with forms such as "eovlve", "evlove", and "evolev". Each variant represents a distinct typo pattern that appears often enough in corpora to be worth flagging, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution.It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "evoke", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Latin ēvolvō (“unroll, unfold”), from ē- (“out of”) (short form of ex) + volvō (“roll”). Root origin matters for spelling because borrowed morphemes (Greek, Latin, Old French, Old English) carry their source-language orthographic conventions into modern English, which is why historical etymology is often the cleanest predictor of whether a cluster like "-ough", "-eau", or "-tion" will appear. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct English form is evolve, spelled E-V-O-L-V-E, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    To move (something) in regular procession through a system.
  2. 2
    To change or transform (something).
  3. 3
    To cause (something) to come into being or develop.
  4. 4
    Of a population: to acquire or develop (a trait) in the process of biological evolution.
  5. 5
    To cause (a population, a species, etc.) to change genetic composition over successive generations through the process of evolution.
  6. 6
    To give off (a gas such as carbon dioxide or oxygen) during a chemical reaction.
  7. 7
    To wind or unwind (something).
  8. 8
    To move in regular procession through a system.
  9. 9
    To change, to transform.
  10. 10
    Of a trait; to develop within a population through biological evolution.

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin ēvolvō (“unroll, unfold”), from ē- (“out of”) (short form of ex) + volvō (“roll”).

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: eovlve,evlove,evolev,evollve,evolvve,evovle,evvolve,veolve

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

Relative frequency of common misspelling types for evolve

Misspelling Variants of "evolve"

eovlve6evlove6evolev6evollve7evolvve7evovle6evvolve7veolve6
Misspelling Variants of "evolve"

Frequency rank: #9,604 in English

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "evolve"?
"evolve" is spelled E-V-O-L-V-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ɪˈvɒlv/.
What does "evolve" mean?
As a verb, "evolve" means: To move (something) in regular procession through a system.
What words are commonly confused with "evolve"?
"evolve" is commonly confused with "evoke". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "evolve"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "evolve" is /ɪˈvɒlv/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "evolve"?
Borrowed from Latin ēvolvō (“unroll, unfold”), from ē- (“out of”) (short form of ex) + volvō (“roll”). See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Nearby English words

Other entries that begin with the letter E in our English index:

Explore PlainSpell

Data Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Frequency data from Wordfreq. Misspellings derived from Hunspell dictionaries.