Tetris effect

noun

The effect of seeing hallucinatory images of a repetitive activity done earlier.

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Meanings

nounTetris effect (plural not attested)
  1. no pluralThe effect of seeing hallucinatory images of a repetitive activity done earlier.

Origin

From Tetris + effect, since players of the video game may find themselves thinking about fitting shapes together in the real world. The earliest known use of the term is in Jeffrey Goldsmith's article "This is Your Brain on Tetris", published in Wired in May 1994.

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Cite this entry
APA

Tetris effect. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Tetris%20effect

MLA

“Tetris effect.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Tetris%20effect. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Tetris effect,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Tetris%20effect.

Source: Tetris effect on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.