escalate

verb

es·​ca·​late ˈe-skə-ˌlāt 

nonstandard

-skyə- 

escalated; escalating

intransitive verb

: to increase in extent, volume, number, amount, intensity, or scope

a little war threatens to escalate into a huge ugly one

—Arnold Abrams

transitive verb

: expand sense 2

escalation

ˌe-skə-ˈlā-shən 

 nonstandard  -skyə-

noun

escalatory

ˈe-skə-lə-ˌtȯr-ē 

 nonstandard  -skyə-

adjective

Synonyms

• accelerate
• accumulate
• appreciate
• balloon
• boom
• build up
• burgeon
• bourgeon
• climb
• enlarge
• expand
• gain
• increase
• mount
• multiply
• mushroom
• proliferate
• rise
• roll up
• snowball
• spread
• swell
• wax

Examples of escalate in a Sentence

The conflict has escalated into an all-out war.

a time of escalating tensions

We are trying not to escalate the violence.

Salaries of leading executives have continued to escalate.

The cold weather has escalated fuel prices.

Recent Examples on the Web

Then, as the conflict in Gaza spilled into the surrounding region, Israel escalated from targeting weapons depots in Syria to systematically eliminating high-value Iranian and Hezbollah assets and personnel there. —Nicole Grajewski, The Atlantic, 3 Dec. 2024

As the Russian counteroffensive in Kursk escalates, Russian losses could escalate, too. —David Axe, Forbes, 2 Dec. 2024

Musk's 2018 pay package gave him stock grants worth around 1% of Tesla's equity each time the company achieved one of 12 tranches of escalating operational and financial goals. —Tom Hals, USA TODAY, 2 Dec. 2024

In severe cases, reactions may escalate to anaphylaxis—a potentially fatal condition. —Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 1 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

back-formation from escalator

First Known Use

1944, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Phrases Containing escalate

• de-escalate
• re-escalate

Kids Definition

escalate

verb

es·​ca·​late ˈes-kə-ˌlāt 

escalated; escalating

: to increase in extent, volume, or scope : expand

escalate prices

escalation

ˌes-kə-ˈlā-shən 

noun