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repercussion

 - 3 dictionary results

re⋅per⋅cus⋅sion

  [ree-per-kuhsh-uhn, rep-er-]
Use repercussion in a Sentence
–noun
1. an effect or result, often indirect or remote, of some event or action: The repercussions of the quarrel were widespread.
2. the state of being driven back by a resisting body.
3. a rebounding or recoil of something after impact.
4. reverberation; echo.
5. Music. (in a fugue) the point after the development of an episode at which the subject and answer appear again.
Origin:
1375–1425; late ME (< MF) < L repercussiōn- (s. of repercussiō) a rebounding, equiv. to repercuss(us) (ptp. of repercutere to strike back) + -iōn- -ion. See re-, percussion
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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re·per·cus·sion   (rē'pər-kŭsh'ən, rěp'ər-)   
n.  

  1. An often indirect effect, influence, or result that is produced by an event or action.

  2. A recoil, rebounding, or reciprocal motion after impact.

  3. A reflection, especially of sound.


[Middle English repercussioun, from Old French repercussion, from Latin repercussiō, repercussiōn-, from repercussus, past participle of repercutere, to cause to rebound : re-, re- + percutere, to strike; see percuss.]
re'per·cus'sive adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

repercussion 
c.1400 (implied in repercussive) "act of driving back," from M.Fr. répercussion (14c.), from L. repercusionem (nom. repercussio), from repercussus, pp. of repercutere "to strike or beat back," from re- "back" + percutere "to strike or thrust through" (see percussion). Meaning "reverberation, echo" first recorded 1595; the metaphoric extension is recorded from 1625.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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