Although in German spelling this word, like all nouns, begins with a capital letter, the English word does not. The final e is not silent. A phenomenon in cardiac muscle first observed by H.P. Bowditch; if a number of stimuli of the same intensity are sent into the muscle after a quiescent period, the first few contractions of the series show a successive increase in amplitude (strength). SYN: staircase phenomenon. [Ger. Treppe, staircase]