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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.
to fall in or like a cascade.
to cause to fall in a cascade.
Electricity. to arrange (components) in a cascade.
Historical Examples

He caught her in his arms as they cascaded into a tangle of limbs and nylon.
The Deadly Daughters Winston K. Marks

So was the ripple of lace that cascaded down the front of her blouse.
Cheerful–By Request Edna Ferber

The rain thundered on the canvas and cascaded in sheets over the dead man under the eaves, but he was beyond even water cure.
History of the Second Massachusetts Regiment of Infantry: A prisoner’s diary Samuel M. Quincy

A perfect torrent of bullets ripped up the dirt and cascaded us with gravel and mud.
A Yankee in the Trenches R. Derby Holmes

The pillar which had supported the head was crumbling away, breaking into a rubble which cascaded across the stone ledge.
Key Out of Time Andre Alice Norton

Down the slopes of the Monarch Divide, seemingly from its turreted summits, cascaded many frothing streams.
The Book of the National Parks Robert Sterling Yard

Olaf smelt his soup, made a face, cascaded the liquid with his spoon, and generally made it apparent that something was wrong.
From Chart House to Bush Hut Charles W. L. Bryde

Caught in the current, Helberson and Harper were swept out of the room and cascaded down the stairs into the street.
The Collected Works of Ambrose Bierce, Vol. II: In the Midst of Life: Tales of Soldiers and Civilians Ambrose Bierce

Battenberg tumbled, foamed, cascaded over Winnebago’s front porches all that summer.
Fanny Herself Edna Ferber

Her robe was torn, and her loosened hair, escaping from its golden pins, cascaded all about her shoulders.
Darkness and Dawn George Allan England

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
(intransitive) to flow or fall in or like a cascade
n.

1640s, from French cascade (17c.), from Italian cascata “waterfall,” from cascare “to fall,” from Vulgar Latin *casicare, frequentative of Latin casum, casus, past participle of cadere “to fall” (see case (n.1)).
v.

1702, from cascade (n.). In early 19c. slang, “to vomit.” Related: Cascaded; cascading.

cascade cas·cade (kā-skād’)
n.
A succession of actions, processes, or operations, as of a physiological process.
cascade
(kās-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.