Developable

de·vel·op  (d-vlp)

v. de·vel·oped, de·vel·op·ing, de·vel·ops

v.tr.

1. To bring from latency to or toward fulfillment: an instructor who develops the capabilities of each student.

2.

a. To expand or enlarge: developed a national corporation into a worldwide business.

b. To aid in the growth of; strengthen: exercises that develop muscles.

c. To improve the quality of; refine: develops his recipes to perfection; an extra year of study to develop virtuosic technique.

3.

a. To cause to become more complex or intricate; add detail and fullness to; elaborate: began with a good premise but developed it without imagination.

b. Music To elaborate (a theme) with rhythmic and harmonic variations.

4.

a. To bring into being gradually: develop a new cottage industry.

b. To set forth or clarify by degrees: developed her thesis in a series of articles.

5.

a. To come to have gradually; acquire: develop a taste for opera; develop a friendship.

b. To become affected with; contract; developed a rash; developed agoraphobia.

6. To cause gradually to acquire a specific role, function, or form, as:

a. To influence the behavior of toward a specific end: an investigator who develops witnesses through flattery and intimidation.

b. To cause (a tract of land) to serve a particular purpose: developed the site as a community of condominiums.

c. To make available and effective to fulfill a particular end or need: develop the state's water resources to serve a growing population.

d. To convert or transform: developed the play into a movie.

7. Games To move (a chess piece) to or toward a more strategic position.

8.

a. To process (a photosensitive material), especially with chemicals, in order to render a recorded image visible.

b. To render (an image) visible by this means.

v.intr.

1.

a. To grow by degrees into a more advanced or mature state: With hard work, she developed into a great writer. See Synonyms at mature.

b. To increase or expand.

c. To improve; advance: Their skill developed until it rivaled their teacher's.

2. To come gradually into existence or activity: Tension developed between students and faculty.

3. To come gradually to light; be disclosed: reports the news as it develops.

4. Biology

a. To progress from earlier to later stages of a life cycle: Caterpillars develop into butterflies.

b. To progress from earlier to later or from simpler to more complex stages of evolution.

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[French développer, from Old French desveloper : des-, dis- + voloper, to wrap (possibly of Celtic origin).]

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de·velop·a·ble adj.