A vicious circle is a problem or difficult situation that has the effect of creating new problems which then cause the original problem or situation to occur again.
Anxiety produces physical symptoms, and the two feed each other in a vicious circle.
...the vicious circle of poverty. [+ of]
vicious circle in British English
noun
1. Also: vicious cycle
a situation in which an attempt to resolve one problem creates new problems that lead back to the original situation
2. logic
a.
a form of reasoning in which a conclusion is inferred from premises the truth of which cannot be established independently of that conclusion
b.
an explanation given in terms that cannot be understood independently of that which was to be explained
c.
a situation in which some statement is shown to entail its negation and vice versa, as this statement is false is true only if false and false only if true
3. medicine
a condition in which one disease or disorder causes another, which in turn aggravates the first condition
vicious circle in American English
1.
a situation in which the solution of one problem gives rise to another, but the solution of this, or of other problems arising from it, brings back the first, often with greater involvement
: also vicious cycle
2.
a situation in which one disease or disorder results in another which in turn aggravates the first
3. Logic
a.
an argument which is invalid because its conclusion rests on a premise which itself depends on the conclusion
b.
the definition of a word by another which is in turn defined by the first
Examples of 'vicious circle' in a sentence
vicious circle
The system is catastrophically failing to end the vicious circle of criminality.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
This is a vicious circle.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
And so a vicious circle is formed.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
It turned into a vicious circle that made me really depressed.
The Sun (2008)
The outcome is a vicious circle of poverty wherein the onus is placed with the poor.
Tomlinson, Richard Urbanization in Post-Apartheid South Africa (1990)
That slows the entire economy and the process can become a vicious circle.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
The only solution to this vicious circle is to jump.
Peter F. Drucker MANAGING FOR RESULTS (1986)
It can soon become a vicious circle.
Ingham, Christine Life Without Work (1994)
This really is a vicious circle.
Pearce, Dr John Families and Friends - how to help your child form happy relationships. (1989)
It's one of those vicious circles.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
Yet Canada succeeded in turning a vicious circle into a broadly virtuous one relatively quickly.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
Yet for the most part India is locked in a vicious circle.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
The vicious circle of alienation is closed, in that people fail to recognize their own alienation.
Low, Nicholas Politics, Planning and the State (1990)
So began the vicious circle of anxiety, where fear of what might happen brought on panic.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
It becomes a vicious circle.
Ingham, Christine Life Without Work (1994)
What might, only a few years ago, have turned into a vicious circle for her has turned into a virtuous one.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
In other languages
vicious circle
British English: vicious circle NOUN
A vicious circle is a problem or difficult situation that has the effect of creating new problems which then cause the original problem or situation to occur again.
The more pesticides are used, the more resistant the insects become so the more pesticides have to be used. It's a vicious circle.