Ramification

Webster's Dictionary of the English Language

·noun The production of branchlike figures.

II. Ramification ·noun The process of branching, or the development of branches or offshoots from a stem; also, the mode of their arrangement.

III. Ramification ·noun A small branch or offshoot proceeding from a main stock or channel; as, the ramifications of an artery, vein, or nerve.

IV. Ramification ·noun A division into principal and subordinate classes, heads, or departments; also, one of the subordinate parts; as, the ramifications of a subject or scheme.