Death Spiral
Noun · Slang & Abbreviations
Definitions
A self-reinforcing downward cycle where each problem worsens the conditions that produce more problems. In engineering slang, death spirals are common in overloaded systems, anxious teams, and products buried under reactive work.
In plain English: A downward cycle where problems keep making each other worse.
Example: "The service entered a death spiral when retries increased load, load caused more failures, and the added failures triggered even more retries."