ripple effect

English

Etymology

An analogy to the spreading ripples on a body of water after an object has struck the surface.

Noun

ripple effect (plural ripple effects)

1. The circumstance in which one event instigates an expansive set of other events.
   • 2016, Liz Nugent, Lying In Wait, →ISBN, page 115:

     Whatever had happened to her, her behaviour had ripple effects that were still causing upset and grief nearly five years later.

   Defaults in America's mortgage lending businesses are causing a ripple effect through the major banks in other continents.

Translations

one event instigating a set of other events

• Czech: řetězová reakce f
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Italian: effetto onda m

See also

• butterfly effect
• domino effect