saltation
noun/sælˈteɪʃən/
Frequency rank: #19,965 of 20,003 in the WORDED list (wordfreq data)
Meaning
A sudden leap or jump; in biology, an abrupt evolutionary change rather than gradual progression.
Example sentence
The researcher described the evolution of the species as occurring through saltation, rather than gradual change.
Synonyms & related words
More words in ranks 19,901–20,000
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