designate vs devolve

designate is an adjective but devolve is not an adjective.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
designate	No	Yes	Yes	No
devolve	No	No	Yes	No

As verbs, devolve is a hyponym of designate; that is, devolve is a word with a more specific, narrower meaning than designate:

designate: give an assignment to (a person) to a post, or assign a task to (a person)
devolve: pass on or delegate to another

designate (adjective)	devolve (adjective)
appointed but not yet installed in office

designate (verb)	devolve (verb)
design or destine	grow progressively worse
assign a name or title to	be inherited by
decree or designate beforehand	pass on or delegate to another
indicate a place, direction, person, or thing; either spatially or figuratively
give an assignment to (a person) to a post, or assign a task to (a person)