multifactorial

[ muhl-tee-fak-tawr-ee-uhl, -tohr-, muhl-tahy- ]

adjective

1. having or stemming from a number of different causes or influences:

   Some medical researchers regard cancer as a multifactorial disease.

multifactorial

/ ˌmʌltɪfækˈtɔːrɪəl /

adjective

1. genetics of or designating inheritance that depends on more than one gene
2. involving or including a number of elements or factors

Other Words From

• multi·fac·tori·al·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of multifactorial¹

First recorded in 1915–20; multi- + factor + -ial

Example Sentences

Instead, experts now acknowledge that elite performance is a “multifactorial” phenomenon — meaning that it’s somewhere between extremely complicated and completely unknowable.

From Outside Online

Prevailing views that people are personally responsible for their weight, despite ample scientific evidence of the complex and multifactorial causes of obesity, are one reason why weight stigma persists.

From No Straight News

I think not repealing it at this point is probably multifactorial.

From Freakonomics