1
a
: a round mass of snow pressed or rolled together
b
2
: any of several cultivated shrubby viburnums (genus Viburnum) with clusters of white sterile flowers
called also snowball bush
snowballed; snowballing; snowballs
1
intransitive
: to increase, accumulate, expand, or multiply at a rapidly accelerating rate
a trend that has begun to snowball
It was one of those games in which things just snowballed and kept getting worse for Philly …—
Paul Zimmerman
Paul ZimmermanThe snowballing growth of the last few years probably cannot continue forever.—Tamar Lewin
Tamar Lewin2
transitive
: to attack with snowballs : to throw snowballs at
Any man so unwise as to walk alone by day was apt to be set upon and snowballed …—Fritz Leiber
Fritz LeiberSynonyms
Examples of snowball in a Sentence
Noun
This snow is perfect for making snowballs.
Verb
Problems snowball when early trouble signs are ignored.
What started as a small annual concert has snowballed into a full-fledged music festival.
consumers dealing with snowballing debt
Recent Examples on the Web
Veronica Bravo, USA TODAY, 18 Jan. 2025
He was booed relentlessly by fans who were upset about a disappointing season and, like Ware's mother, he was even hit with snowballs.
—Jackson Thompson, Fox News, 18 Jan. 2025
John Branch, New York Times, 23 Jan. 2025
At Duke, Zion and the support system around him made sure setbacks didn’t snowball into larger issues.
—William Guillory, The Athletic, 22 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for snowball 
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Noun
When you're finished packing the snowball, place it carefully at the top of the sculpture.
—Veronica Bravo, USA TODAY, 18 Jan. 2025
He was booed relentlessly by fans who were upset about a disappointing season and, like Ware's mother, he was even hit with snowballs.
—Jackson Thompson, Fox News, 18 Jan. 2025
Verb
As so began a quixotic quest, snowballing into winter, cheered by skiers and snowboarders in Oregon and beyond, to raise about $200 million and wrest Mt. Bachelor from the corporate titans of a consolidating industry.
—John Branch, New York Times, 23 Jan. 2025
At Duke, Zion and the support system around him made sure setbacks didn’t snowball into larger issues.
—William Guillory, The Athletic, 22 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for snowball
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Dictionary Entries Near snowball
Cite this Entry
“Snowball.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/snowball. Accessed 26 Jan. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
snowball
1 of 2 noun
snow·ball
ˈsnō-ˌbȯl 
1
: a round mass of snow pressed or rolled together
2
: a viburnum widely grown for its ball-shaped clusters of white flowers
called also snowball bush
snowball
2 of 2 verb1
: to throw snowballs at
2
: to increase or expand at a rapidly accelerating rate
problems snowball when early trouble signs are ignored
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