cascade

[ kas-keyd ]

/ kæsˈkeɪd /

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See synonyms for: cascade / cascading on Thesaurus.com

noun

a waterfall descending over a steep, rocky surface.

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

anything that resembles a waterfall, especially in seeming to flow or fall in abundance: a cascade of roses covering the wall.

(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.

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

a type of firework resembling a waterfall in effect.

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.

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

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.

verb (used without object), cas·cad·ed, cas·cad·ing.

to fall in or like a cascade.

verb (used with object), cas·cad·ed, cas·cad·ing.

to cause to fall in a cascade.

Electricity. to arrange (components) in a cascade.

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Origin of cascade

1635–45; <French <Italian cascata, equivalent to casc(are) to fall (<Vulgar Latin *cāsicāre, equivalent to cās(us) fallen (past participle of cadere) + -icā- formative v. suffix + -re infinitive ending) + -ata-ade¹

OTHER WORDS FROM cascade

cas·cad·er, nounun·cas·cad·ed, adjectiveun·cas·cad·ing, adjective

Words nearby cascade

casaque, Casas, Casaubon, casbah, cascabel, cascade, cascade molecule, cascade particle, Cascade Range, Cascades, Cascadia

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use cascade in a sentence

Although there certainly is some signal in the probabilities of safe states, in simulations such as these, including them can cause enormous cascades in which a state like Kansas goes blue and so does the rest of America.
The Forecast: The Methodology Behind Our 2020 Election Model|Daniel Malloy|September 10, 2020|Ozy
So the phytoplankton that can feed a cascade of ocean life don’t bloom here.
Some deep-seafloor microbes still alive after 100 million years!|Carolyn Gramling|September 1, 2020|Science News For Students
Failure to fight the virus and fill the gap in private spending with public dollars will mean less demand in the economy, starting a cascade of more lay-offs and business failures in the classic vicious cycle of recession.
Republicans fret over coronavirus lawsuits amid economic collapse|Tim Fernholz|July 22, 2020|Quartz
The WNBA is set to begin its season on July 25, while the NBA — the league whose abrupt shutdown set off a cascade of matching shutdowns in other sports — will restart its own season on July 30 at Walt Disney World.
Who’s Who In The NBA Bubble: The Teams Just Along For The Ride|Jared Dubin|July 20, 2020|FiveThirtyEight

That joint statement led to a cascade of school district closures that eventually led nearly every school in the state to close.
San Diego Unified Decision Underscores Districts’ Wildly Different Reopening Plans|Will Huntsberry|July 13, 2020|Voice of San Diego
I remember practicing that lick [from the solo “Round Midnight” recording] years ago, learning how to do that cascade effect.
Herbie Hancock Holds Forth|David Yaffe|November 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
With her cascade of red, twirling hair and pale, fine-boned face.
Murdoch on the Rocks: How a Lone Reporter Revealed the Mogul's Tabloid Terror Machine|Clive Irving|August 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The cascade of same-sex marriage rulings is now a torrent, each more quotable and image-ready than the last.
Pennsylvania. Oregon. Is Gay Marriage Unstoppable?|Jay Michaelson|May 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Expect aurora borealis in the long foray but no cascade of light.
How Seamus Heaney Influenced Poet Laureate Natasha Trethewey|Natasha Trethewey|September 3, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Sander and Taylor say that this is exactly what mismatch theory would predict, because preferences cascade.
Affirmative Action: Who Does it Help, Who Does it Hurt?|Megan McArdle|June 24, 2013|DAILY BEAST
As the bright glow of a little cascade of sparks pierced the darkness, a voice in our rear called sharply: "Hands up!"
Raw Gold|Bertrand W. Sinclair
She was a slim, girlish-looking woman, with a cascade of long dark hair falling over her shoulders.
A Butterfly on the Wheel|Cyril Arthur Edward Ranger Gull
One must work or go, and when a cascade of gravel poured off the cars as the plow moved along he pulled himself together.
The Girl From Keller's|Harold Bindloss
To accompany me to the cascade—there to invoke the Siren, and ask if she may be seen.
The Tiger Hunter|Mayne Reid
Accident, not design, had conducted him to the bottom of the cascade.
The Tiger Hunter|Mayne Reid

British Dictionary definitions for cascade

cascade

/ (kæsˈkeɪd) /

noun

a waterfall or series of waterfalls over rocks

something resembling this, such as folds of lace

a consecutive sequence of chemical or physical processes
(as modifier)cascade liquefaction

a series of stages in the processing chain of an electrical signal where each operates the next in turn
(as modifier)a cascade amplifier

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

the sequence of spontaneous decays by an excited atom or ion

verb

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

Word Origin for cascade

C17: from French, from Italian cascata, from cascare to fall, ultimately from Latin cadere to fall

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for cascade

cascade

[ kăs-kād′ ]

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.

cascade

Origin of cascade

OTHER WORDS FROM cascade

Words nearby cascade

Words related to cascade

How to use cascade in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for cascade

Word Origin for cascade

Scientific definitions for cascade