devolve

(dĭ-vŏlv')

v., -volved, -volv·ing, -volves.

v.tr.

1. To pass on or delegate to another: The senator devolved the duties of office upon a group of aides.
2. Archaic. To cause to roll onward or downward.

v.intr.

1. To be passed on or transferred to another: The burden of proof devolved upon the defendant. The estate devolved to an unlikely heir.
2. To degenerate or deteriorate gradually: After several hours the discussion had devolved into a shouting match.
3. Archaic. To roll onward or downward.

[Middle English devolven, to transfer, from Old French devolver, to confer, ascribe, from Latin dēvolvere, to roll down, fall to : dē-, de- + volvere, to roll.]

devolvement de·volve'ment n.

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is a verb of reviving fortunes in the age of political devolution. Its three principal uses are as follows: (1) you devolve powers, authority, etc., on or upon someone, (2) power, authority, etc., devolves on or upon someone, and (3) a right, benefit, etc., devolves to (or occasionally on) someone. The word appears frequently in the form devolved to refer to a body or its powers when these have been devolved by a national government (as has happened in the UK in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland):

Our increasing dependence on tourism calls for highly devolved decision-making—Glasgow Herald, 1986

This is a devolved issue and is the responsibility of the Welsh Assembly Government—Times, 2007.

The back-formed verb devolute, found occasionally in the 19th century, is now virtually extinct.

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verb

To come as by lot or inheritance: fall, pass. See reach/unreachable.

v

Definition: delegate
Antonyms: centralize, retain

“when by operation of law , and without any voluntary act of the previous owner, [an estate ] passes from one person to another; it does not devolve from one person to another as the result of some positive act or agreement between them . . . ; [the word] implies a result without the intervention of any voluntary actor.” 29 P. 495, 497.

IN BRIEF: To pass on from one person or entity to another.

All higher motives, ideals, conceptions, sentiments in a man are of no account if they do not come forward to strengthen him for the better discharge of the duties which devolve upon him in the ordinary affairs of life. — Henry Ward Beecher (1813-1887).

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See words rhyming with "devolve."

  See crossword solutions for the clue Devolve.

Dansk (Danish)
v. tr. - uddelegere, decentralisere
v. intr. - overdrage, gå til, falde i arv til

idioms:

• devolve upon    gå til

Nederlands (Dutch)
overdragen (aan vervanger etc.), afwentelen, toevallen door versterf (juridisch)

Français (French)
v. tr. - déléguer à, transmettre à, remettre à
v. intr. - incomber à, retomber sur, échoir à, (Jur) passer à, être transmis à

idioms:

• devolve into    faire baisser, baisser
• devolve on    incomber à, rejeter sur, (Jur) être dévolu à
• devolve upon    incomber à, rejeter sur, (Jur) être dévolu à

Deutsch (German)
v. - übertragen, zufallen, vererbt werden

idioms:

• devolve into    zu etw. entarten
• devolve on    übertragen auf
• devolve upon    übertragen auf

Ελληνική (Greek)
v. - μεταβιβάζω, εκχωρώ, περιέρχομαι, εμπίπτω (στην αρμοδιότητα ή κυριότητα)

idioms:

• devolve upon    περιέρχομαι, εμπίπτω (στην αρμοδιότητα ή κυριότητα)

Italiano (Italian)
trasmettere

idioms:

• devolve upon    riversare su

Português (Portuguese)
v. - transferir, involuir

idioms:

• devolve upon    ser transferido para...

Русский (Russian)
скатываться, передавать

idioms:

• devolve upon    возлагать на

Español (Spanish)
v. tr. - delegar, transferir
v. intr. - delegar, transmitir

idioms:

• devolve into    delegar a
• devolve on    incumbir a, corresponder a, recaer sobre, transferido a
• devolve upon    incumbir a, corresponder a, recaer sobre

Svenska (Swedish)
v. - överlåta, jur. om egendom: tillfalla

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
转移, 委托, 传下, 被移交

idioms:

• devolve upon    转移给...

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
v. tr. - 轉移, 委託, 傳下
v. intr. - 被移交

idioms:

• devolve upon    轉移給...

한국어 (Korean)
v. tr. - (권리, 의무를) 넘기다
v. intr. - (소유물이) 넘어가다, 귀속하다

idioms:

• devolve upon    ~에 귀속하다

日本語 (Japanese)
v. - 譲り渡す, 委譲される, 継承される, 依存する, 委ねる, 渡す

idioms:

• devolve upon    譲り渡す, 移る

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(فعل) ينقل, يحول الى‏

עברית (Hebrew)
v. tr. - ‮העביר, הטיל, גילגל, הסמיך‬
v. intr. - ‮עבר, נפלו ברצף‬

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