n.
1.act of improving by expanding or enlarging or refining
2.a process in which something passes by degrees to a different stage (especially a more advanced or mature stage)
3.a recent event that has some relevance for the present situation
4.the act of making some area of land or water more profitable or productive or useful
5.a district that has been developed to serve some purpose
6.a state in which things are improving
7.(biology) the process of an individual organism growing organically
8.processing a photosensitive material in order to make an image visible