trickled down
Flowed down gradually
Trickled down describes something that has moved slowly downward or gradually spread from a higher level to a lower one.
Liquid trickles down a surface: Rain trickled down the window.
The phrase often appears in economic contexts, where benefits supposedly trickle down from wealthy individuals or corporations to the broader population: The tax cuts haven't trickled down to working families.
- flowedMoved as liquid does
- leakedEscaped through opening
- oozedFlowed out slowly
- dribbleLeak in drops
- water dropletsMinute liquid spheres
income inequality · wealth gap · ripple effect · rising tide · wealth redistribution · runoff · dripping · infiltration · seepage · supply-side economics · percolation · tax cuts · fiscal policy · dissemination · cascaded · economic disparity · drainage · welfare systems