What does evolution mean?
Word: Evolution
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Evolution means slow change over a very long time, especially the way living things change over many generations.
Synonyms: growth
How do you spell evolution?
Syllables: ev - o - lu - tion
Tricky part: It has one l, and the vowels go o then u: ev-o-lu.
Watch out for: evelution, evolutoin, evollution
Memory tip: Things evolve slowly, and evolution keeps the same e-v-o-l start as evolve.
Evolution in a sentence
Example 1: Our science book has a chapter on the evolution of the horse.
Example 2: The evolution of mobile phones has been very fast.
Example 3: Over millions of years, evolution gave whales flippers in place of legs.
Fun Fact
Charles Darwin did not use the word evolution in the first edition of On the Origin of Species in 1859. The very last word of that book is evolved.
Practise the CREST Way
Mingle-Mangle
Form a meaningful word from the jumbled letters:
lounivote
a) resolution
b) revolution
c) evolution
d) evaluation
Show answer
c) evolution. No r and no a appear in the letters, which rules out three of the words.
Word Cookie
Find the misspelt word in the sentence:
Our teacher showed a chart on the evolusion of birds from small dinosaurs.
a) chart
b) evolusion
c) dinosaurs
d) teacher
Show answer
b) evolusion. The last part is tion, as in many science words such as pollution.
Spell-o-Spell
Choose the correctly spelt word:
a) evolution
b) speceis
c) fosill
d) dinosor
Show answer
a) evolution. Look for one l and the o before u: evolution has both.
Word Connection
Choose the synonym of the word: evolution
a) destruction
b) direction
c) decision
d) development
Show answer
d) development. Development is slow growth and change, which is what evolution means.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which of these is the best example of evolution?
a) Giraffes' necks lengthening over ages
b) A puppy growing into a big dog
c) A cake rising in a hot oven
d) Ice slowly melting in a glass
Show answer
a) Giraffes' necks lengthening over ages
2. The evolution of the bicycle means...
a) how a bicycle is ridden and steered
b) which shops sell bicycles today
c) how fast a racing bicycle can go
d) how bicycles have changed over the years
Show answer
d) how bicycles have changed over the years
