develop

Develop is a verb with several related meanings. It commonly means to cause growth, progression, or maturation; to bring something into existence or a more advanced form through planning and effort. It is used transitively to develop a plan, a skill, a product, or a theory, and intransitively to indicate growth or progression, as in a child develops into an adult or a project develops over time.

Specific domains: In photography, development refers to chemically processing exposed film or photographic paper to reveal the image. In computing and software design, software development is the process of creating, testing, and maintaining applications. In industry and real estate, development denotes building or improving infrastructure, housing, or commercial spaces, as well as the resulting area or project.

Other uses and related terms: Development is the noun form; a developer is a person or organization that creates or improves something, including a chemical developer for film. The terms developed and developing appear in contexts such as “developed countries” and “developing countries” to describe levels of economic and social development. The word encompasses both concrete processes and more abstract progress toward a desired state.