knock-on effect

English

Etymology

knock + on + effect

Noun

knock-on effect (plural knock-on effects)

1. (literally) The continued running of an engine after the ignition has been turned off; dieseling.
2. (idiomatic, UK) A secondary, often unintended effect.

   If a coach arrives late, it has a knock-on effect on the entire coach station.

   • 2007, March 24th, The Economist magazine, page 51:

     There are various knock-on effects [to the international boycott of the Palestinian government]. PA [Palestinian Authority] services, particularly health and education, have deteriorated sharply because of supply shortages and strikes by workers. Much of the time hospitals have been seeing only emergency cases.

Translations

French: effet domino

Spanish: efecto dominó (es) m.

See also

• idiom, other effects: domino effect
• concept, related: Unintended consequence