cascade

American  

[kas-keyd] / kæsˈkeɪd /

noun

• cascades
  plural

1. a waterfall descending over a steep, rocky surface.

2. a series of shallow or steplike waterfalls, either natural or artificial.

3. anything that resembles a waterfall, especially in seeming to flow or fall in abundance.

   a cascade of roses covering the wall.

4. (in a drain or sewer) a chain of steps for dissipating the momentum of falling water in a steep place in order to maintain a steady rate of flow.

5. an arrangement of a lightweight fabric in folds falling one over another in random or zigzag fashion.

6. a type of firework resembling a waterfall in effect.

7. Chemistry. a series of vessels, from each of which a fluid successively overflows to the next, thus presenting a large absorbing surface, as to a gas.

8. Electricity. an arrangement of component devices, as electrolytic cells, each of which feeds into the next in succession.

9. Biochemistry. a series of reactions catalyzed by enzymes that are activated sequentially by successive products of the reactions, resulting in an amplification of the initial response.

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verb (used without object)

• cascades,
  present (3rd person singular)
• cascaded,
  past participle,  past
• cascading
  present participle

1. to fall in or like a cascade.

verb (used with object)

• cascades,
  present (3rd person singular)
• cascaded,
  past participle,  past
• cascading
  present participle

1. to cause to fall in a cascade.

2. Electricity. to arrange (components) in a cascade.

cascade British  

/ kæsˈkeɪd /

noun

1. a waterfall or series of waterfalls over rocks

2. something resembling this, such as folds of lace

3. 1. a consecutive sequence of chemical or physical processes

   2. ( as modifier )

      cascade liquefaction

4. 1. a series of stages in the processing chain of an electrical signal where each operates the next in turn

   2. ( as modifier )

      a cascade amplifier

5. the cumulative process responsible for the formation of an electrical discharge, cosmic-ray shower, or Geiger counter avalanche in a gas

6. the sequence of spontaneous decays by an excited atom or ion

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verb

1. (intr) to flow or fall in or like a cascade

cascade Scientific  

/ kăs-kād′ /

1. A series of chemical or physiological processes that occur in successive stages, each of which is dependent on the preceding one, to produce a culminating effect. The steps involved in the clotting of blood occur as a cascade.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• cascader
  noun
• uncascaded
  adjective
• uncascading
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• cascades
  plural

Participles

• cascading
  present
• cascaded
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• cascade
  simple
• cascades
  simple
• have cascaded
  perfect
• has cascaded
  perfect
• am cascading
  progressive
• are cascading
  progressive
• is cascading
  progressive
• have been cascading
  perfect progressive
• has been cascading
  perfect progressive

Past

• cascaded
  simple
• had cascaded
  perfect
• was cascading
  progressive
• were cascading
  progressive
• had been cascading
  perfect progressive

Future

• will cascade
  simple
• will have cascaded
  perfect
• will be cascading
  progressive
• will have been cascading
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of cascade

First recorded in 1635–45; from French, from Italian cascata, from casc(are) “to fall” (from Vulgar Latin cāsicāre (unrecorded), from cās(us) “fallen,” past participle of cadere “to fall”; cf. cadenza, case ¹) + -ata -ade ¹

Explanation

Think of a cascade as something suddenly falling, tumbling down in a rush. The word cascade conjures up a vision of anything falling in a manner resembling a waterfall — think of a cascade of shining hair, a sudden cascade of tears, or the cascade of light during a meteor shower. The idea behind the word is of something falling in a progressive manner or a series of steps. A downward progression of musical themes can be called a cascade, as can the disastrous cascade of the tumbling price of a stock on Wall Street.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

cascade cascades cascaded cascading

Researchers warn the growing density of space junk could trigger the so-called "Kessler syndrome" cascade of collisions.

From Barron's ● Aug. 7, 2026

A red cartoon hunk of steak, a bronzed turkey, a few shrimp, a tub of unsweetened yogurt, an apple and a bag of frozen peas cascade alongside him.

From Salon ● Aug. 5, 2026

But, he argues, it will create a cascade effect: People who move in will vacate other apartment buildings, easing the city’s supply crunch.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026

Once inside the park before 8 a.m., their first stop was the Bridalveil Fall Trail, a short trek that takes visitors right to the base of the thundering cascade.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026

Matthias deflected it with his shield in a cascade of sparks and went after the horde leader.

From "Redwall" by Brian Jacques

On the kitchen walls, the “Lauenstein Yellow” tile cascades down into polychrome patterns.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026

It is hard to imagine that Iran’s centrifuge cascades survived the intense bombing.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 3, 2026

"The longer it goes on, that kind of cascades into much bigger problems, particularly if there's not enough oil in general to run stuff."

From Barron's ● May 6, 2026

As these TeV gamma rays travel across intergalactic space, they interact with faint background light from stars, producing cascades of electron-positron pairs.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 7, 2025

Io moves in an orbit so close to Jupiter that it plows through the midst of this intense radiation, creating cascades of charged particles, which in turn generate violent bursts of radio energy.

From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan

The downpour cascaded into subway stations and flooded city streets in parts of New York and the Tri-State area, which also includes Connecticut, while some drivers abandoned their vehicles in rising water.

From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2026

The study also demonstrated that these artificial neurons can be linked together, or "cascaded," into larger networks.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 12, 2026

Her hair cascaded down her back in curls.

From Barron's ● Feb. 2, 2026

“That’s the rumor,” she replied sarcastically, moments after the icons on her screen cascaded in glorious alignment, amounting to a sizable jackpot.

From Slate ● Nov. 18, 2025

The cold morning light cascaded through the window.

From "When the Sea Turned to Silver" by Grace Lin

She too referenced the cascading effects that the lack of classification has on educating clinicians, family knowledge and insurance coverage.

From BBC ● Aug. 19, 2026

Instead of undergoing a potentially career-ending surgery, he played with a custom-made orthotic, which contributed to years of cascading injuries — mostly to his hips, knees and back.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026

The new reactors also use different technology from conventional plants, ruling out the kind of cascading disasters seen at Three Mile Island and Chernobyl, and allowing for far simpler, cheaper construction.

From Barron's ● Jun. 28, 2026

“The sequence was a complex, cascading process driven by a combination of long-term historical stress and immediate stress transfer,” Nalbant said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026

Petite and Black, with hundreds of tiny braids cascading down her back, she walked with unexpectedly long strides, eating up the pavement while looking straight ahead, body framed by late-afternoon summer sunlight.

From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith

Related Words

• descend
• gush
• overflow
• pour
• spew
• spill
• tumble