Hypertext Webster Gateway: "ramification"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Ramification \Ram`i*fi*ca"tion\, n. [Cf. F. ramification. See
{Ramify}.]
1. The process of branching, or the development or offshoots
from a stem; also, the mode of their arrangement.
2. A small branch or offshoot proceeding from a main stock or
channel; as, the ramifications of an artery, vein, or
nerve.
3. A division into principal and subordinate classes, heads,
or departments; also, one of the subordinate parts; as,
the ramifications a subject or scheme.
4. The production of branchlike figures. --Crabb.
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
ramification
n 1: the act of branching out or dividing into branches [syn: {branching},
{fork}, {forking}]
2: a development that complicates a situation; "the court's
decision had many unforeseen ramifications" [syn: {complication}]
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