developmentally

Developmentally is an adverb used to describe aspects related to development, particularly in humans. It is commonly used in fields such as pediatrics, psychology, education, and social services to indicate how a behavior, skill, or process unfolds over time across physical, cognitive, emotional, and social domains. The term often appears in phrases like developmentally appropriate, developmentally typical, or developmentally delayed to indicate alignment with or deviation from expected growth patterns.

In practice, developmentally appropriate practices refer to activities and expectations that fit a child’s age, abilities, and current developmental stage. The phrase developmentally delayed is used in clinical contexts to describe slower-than-expected progress in development; however, modern usage often favors more precise descriptors or focuses on the specific developmental delay rather than labeling a person. The word is frequently encountered alongside developmental as a noun-adjective combination, for example developmental milestones or developmental psychology, where developmental describes the underlying concepts and processes, and developmentally modifies how those concepts are applied or observed.

Etymology and usage notes: developmentally is formed from the noun development with the adverbial suffix -ly. Development comes from a lineage that passed from Latin and Old French into English, and developmentally inherits that sense of relating to the progression and maturation of abilities or characteristics over time. In writing, developmentally is typically used to discuss temporal patterns, trajectories, and the timing of skills or behaviors.

See also: developmental, development, developmental milestones, developmental psychology, developmental delay.