vicious circle

a problem which gets worse and worse

TRANSLATION

vicious circle = der Teufelskreis --- GOOGLE INDEX vicious circle: approximately 1,500,000 Google hits

STATISTICS

IN THE PRESS

An Ipswich churchyard is being turned into a campsite for homeless people stuck in a VICIOUS CIRCLE.

(BBC News)

---
Russia Trapped in VICIOUS CIRCLE in the Caucasus

(Georgian Daily)

Did you
know?

vicious circle
noun phrase

- a continuing unpleasant situation, created when one problem causes another problem which then makes the first problem worse

(Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary)

---
Vicious circle was originally used by practitioners of logical thinking to describe a misleading argument based on the following statement:

A depends on B
B depends on C
Therefore A depends on C

The term was adopted by the medical field to describe when one symptom affects another, causing the patient's condition to become worse. The general meaning of "vicious circle" refers to a situation where one trouble leads to another, which ends up making the first one worse.

The opposite of a vicious circle is a "virtuous circle." This is a condition in which a favourable circumstance or result gives rise to another that subsequently supports the first. This is in contrast to a vicious circle, which leads to negative results.

---
SYNONYMS

an unfortunate chain of circumstances, a negative domino effect, a knock-on effect, a ripple effect

---
SMUGGLE OWAD INTO TODAY'S CONVERSATION:

"A vicious circle of drug addiction and crime creates many social problems."

More Word Quizzes: