Butterfly-effect
a cumulatively large effect that a very small natural force may produce over a period of time.
noun
the idea, used in chaos theory, that a very small difference in the initial state of a physical system can make a significant difference to the state at some later time
noun
Word Origin
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- Butterfly-flower
Also called Jerusalem date. a shrub or small tree, Bauhinia monandra, of French Guiana, having clusters of pink, purple-streaked flowers. schizanthus. Historical Examples Omphalos Philip Henry Gosse
- Butterfly-kiss
butterfly kiss Historical Examples A harum-scarum schoolgirl Angela Brazil Letters of Two Brides Honore de Balzac The Wishing Moon Louise Elizabeth Dutton Red Pottage Mary Cholmondeley Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom Cory Doctorow
- Butterfly-nut
wing nut. noun another name for wing nut
- Butterfly-orchid
an epiphytic South American orchid, Oncidium papilio, having large yellow and reddish-brown flowers. either of two terrestrial Old World orchids, Habenaria chlorantha or H. bifolia, having long clusters of greenish-white flowers.
- Butterfly-pea
any of several leguminous plants of the genus Clitoria, as C. mariana, of North America, having pale-blue flowers.