variants
also vicious cycle
as in cycle
a repeating situation or condition in which one problem causes another problem that makes the first problem worse
We're trapped in a vicious circle of needing to borrow money in order to pay debts.
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Recent Examples of vicious circle
Dreaming of owning For now, scores of Londoners are trapped in a vicious circle.
—
Anna Cooban, CNN, 31 Jan. 2025
This is an important step towards justice and accountability for women and girls in Afghanistan - women and girls who have been effectively separated, segregated and removed from the public square, locked in the vicious circle of gender apartheid.
—Dr. Ewelina U. Ochab, Forbes, 23 Jan. 2025
Coupled with a new Trump trade war, the resulting economic slowdown could create a vicious circle.
—Bilahari Kausikan, Foreign Affairs, 7 Jan. 2025
Deflation could lead to a vicious circle by driving down spending and investment, which in turn lead to weaker economic growth and higher unemployment.
—Jason Ma, Fortune, 13 Oct. 2024
See All Example Sentences for vicious circle
Anna Cooban, CNN, 31 Jan. 2025
This is an important step towards justice and accountability for women and girls in Afghanistan - women and girls who have been effectively separated, segregated and removed from the public square, locked in the vicious circle of gender apartheid.
—Dr. Ewelina U. Ochab, Forbes, 23 Jan. 2025
Coupled with a new Trump trade war, the resulting economic slowdown could create a vicious circle.
—Bilahari Kausikan, Foreign Affairs, 7 Jan. 2025
Deflation could lead to a vicious circle by driving down spending and investment, which in turn lead to weaker economic growth and higher unemployment.
—Jason Ma, Fortune, 13 Oct. 2024
See All Example Sentences for vicious circle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for vicious circle
Noun
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Responsible for maintaining the soft, steady music of our autonomic nervous system, the hypothalamus, through a mix of direct action or hormonal release, governs everything from body temperature and blood pressure to hunger and thirst, digestion, sleep-wake cycles, and mood.—
Tom Zeller Jr.
July 30,
Literary Hub,
30 July 2025
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Breaking the cycle of chronic homelessness, community leaders and advocates say, must start by supporting youths who don't have a place to call home.—
Ethan Hylton,
IndyStar,
30 July 2025
Noun
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The Hustle reached out to some longtime independent swim school operators who hold board positions with the US Swim School Association to ask for their opinions on the influx of chains like Goldfish and others.—
Mark Dent,
HubSpot,
1 Aug. 2025
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Between dodging axe blades and wriggling free of chains, the limber lord explains his intent: to inspire people to face their own terrors.—
Hilton Als,
New Yorker,
1 Aug. 2025
Noun
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The episode sees Miranda Hobbes' friend Jeremy Fields (Stephen Barker Turner) visiting from London and quickly falling in love with her interior designer (Carrie Preston), with the show's central circle of friends later attending the surprising new couple's wedding.—
Madison E. Goldberg,
People.com,
29 July 2025
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With the next review conference a year away, nuclear states should seek to agree on this pragmatic agenda and to grow the circle of like-minded pragmatists.—
STACIE E. GODDARD,
Foreign Affairs,
28 July 2025
Noun
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Because heat is the random motion of particles, these thermal effects suggest to many researchers that black holes, and the space-time continuum in general, actually consist of some kind of particles or other microscopic components.—
George Musser,
Quanta Magazine,
13 June 2025
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This sounds specific enough, but the film’s bleakness belongs on a continuum with any number of works from the past ten or 15 or 20 years.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
3 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Vicious circle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/vicious%20circle. Accessed 5 Aug. 2025.
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