What is the difference between "natural selection" and "survival of the fittest"?

Question

The definitions of both terms seem so similar, so I'm not sure whether if they can be used interchangably or are they actually different.

Answer 1

They can be used interchangeably. Natural selection means that the specimens best adapted to the environment (fittest) have the strongest change of reproduction, basically.

So they are both saying the same thing, just in a different way.

This is assuming you are speaking only of evolution of course, for thre are unrelated common usage meanings.

Answer 2

Survival of the fittest is goes down to the individual animal.
Like the giraffe with the slightly longer neck; he fits better in his environment; he gets more and better leaves, and he is therefore more likely to survive.

If you look at the group of giraffes and you see some are strong, healthy and have longer necks, and they're also the ones with more offspring, and their offspring also has longer necks.
That's natural selection at work.

Answer 3

Natural selection is the actual evolutionary process of undesirable traits disappearing, and desired ones becoming more prominent, while survival of the fittest is more of a metaphor describing competition for survival or predominance.
So not really the same thing, but I guess it kinda is...

Answer 4

Sane thing, the latter just sounds corny.