1
as in increasing
to become greater in extent, volume, amount, or number
as the war between the two countries escalated, it threatened to become a global conflict
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in accelerating
to make greater in size, amount, or number
the president promised to escalate the government's program to combat the dreaded disease
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of escalating
The move comes amid fragile ceasefire violations, escalating rhetoric and shifting deadlines, with Washington and Tehran trading fire last week while talks stall over Iran’s nuclear program and regional security.
—
Michelle L. Price, Los Angeles Times, 19 May 2026
Riot police equipped with tactical gear were forced to march onto the field to quell the escalating unrest.
—Alejandro Avila Outkick, FOXNews.com, 18 May 2026
Eidinger is perfect for the role, and his escalating temper tantrums — almost camp at first, with delicious echoes of Christoph Waltz’s Hans Landa — become frightening in their intensity.
—Damon Wise, Deadline, 18 May 2026
As swirling rumors and escalating fears mount of imminent US-Israeli strikes, there is a growing sense of inevitability among many Iranians about the resumption of hostilities.
—Matthew Chance, CNN Money, 18 May 2026
Without a structured architecture, AI adoption can lead to unpredictable and escalating budgets.
—Madhavi Rajan, Forbes.com, 18 May 2026
What begins as ignorance plants the seed of disaster, escalating through human conflict into a tragedy of cosmic proportions.
—Tommy McArdle, PEOPLE, 18 May 2026
Herry gives us full scenes of Garance performing and voice-acting with joy, and thankfully doesn’t time-stamp the escalating events of her life in rigid chapters.
—Tomris Laffly, Variety, 17 May 2026
The Saudi Aramco logo is displayed on a mobile phone screen in this photo illustration, as prices fluctuate amid escalating conflict involving Iran and concerns over global supply disruptions in Brussels, Belgium, on March 2, 2026.
—Azhar Sukri, CNBC, 10 May 2026
Michelle L. Price, Los Angeles Times, 19 May 2026
Riot police equipped with tactical gear were forced to march onto the field to quell the escalating unrest.
—Alejandro Avila Outkick, FOXNews.com, 18 May 2026
Eidinger is perfect for the role, and his escalating temper tantrums — almost camp at first, with delicious echoes of Christoph Waltz’s Hans Landa — become frightening in their intensity.
—Damon Wise, Deadline, 18 May 2026
As swirling rumors and escalating fears mount of imminent US-Israeli strikes, there is a growing sense of inevitability among many Iranians about the resumption of hostilities.
—Matthew Chance, CNN Money, 18 May 2026
Without a structured architecture, AI adoption can lead to unpredictable and escalating budgets.
—Madhavi Rajan, Forbes.com, 18 May 2026
What begins as ignorance plants the seed of disaster, escalating through human conflict into a tragedy of cosmic proportions.
—Tommy McArdle, PEOPLE, 18 May 2026
Herry gives us full scenes of Garance performing and voice-acting with joy, and thankfully doesn’t time-stamp the escalating events of her life in rigid chapters.
—Tomris Laffly, Variety, 17 May 2026
The Saudi Aramco logo is displayed on a mobile phone screen in this photo illustration, as prices fluctuate amid escalating conflict involving Iran and concerns over global supply disruptions in Brussels, Belgium, on March 2, 2026.
—Azhar Sukri, CNBC, 10 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for escalating
Verb
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James Ward During the debate, Republican candidate Steve Hilton said that only a small percentage of California has been developed for housing, arguing that the state should focus on building homes on undeveloped land rather than increasing density in existing cities.—
James Ward,
USA Today,
15 May 2026
-
Doing so compresses the light reflected from the plasma, thereby increasing its intensity.—
Ameya Paleja,
Interesting Engineering,
14 May 2026
Verb
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Anthropic also warned that highly capable AI models could dramatically improve offensive cyber operations by accelerating vulnerability discovery and attack planning.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
14 May 2026
-
New research points to a mechanism within the Cascadia fault that could be accelerating a break.—
Julia Jacobo,
ABC News,
14 May 2026
Verb
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Trump’s approval ratings have fallen to below forty per cent, the Iran war grinds on, and gas prices have been rising, as has inflation.—
Amy Davidson Sorkin,
New Yorker,
17 May 2026
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This rising use of AI has principally been spurred by the evolving advances and widespread adoption of generative AI.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
16 May 2026
Verb
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With revenue-sharing challenges mounting across college athletics — and some schools already cutting sports — expanding the playoff has become a potential financial lifeline.—
Trey Wallace OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
14 May 2026
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According to Abbott's office, the Texas Department of Public Safety is immediately expanding the Texas Repeat Offender Taskforce to the Dallas-Fort Worth, San Antonio and Austin metropolitan areas.—
Mateo Rosiles,
USA Today,
14 May 2026
Verb
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More than 100 peacocks are wreaking havoc in the Italian seaside town of Punta Marina on the Adriatic coast, leading to local divisions over what to do about the swelling colony.—
Amarachi Orie,
CNN Money,
14 May 2026
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Fluid can start to leak out into surrounding tissues and collect there, which can show up as swelling in areas like the face and around the eyes, said Johnson.—
Kathleen Ferraro,
Verywell Health,
14 May 2026
Verb
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The tiny glow-boosting beads burst upon contact to support elasticity and collagen production, making this an especially good pick for mature skin craving more cushion and bounce.—
Christa Joanna Lee,
Allure,
20 May 2026
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Data collected by the LOXSAT mission may inform SpaceX’s and Blue Origin’s orbital refueling efforts, boosting the Artemis program as a whole.—
Chris Young,
Interesting Engineering,
20 May 2026
Verb
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While Univision will continue to feature the highly dramatic telenovelas for which it is best known, the network is augmenting its schedule in areas that are certain to draw broader crowds, including sports.—
Brian Steinberg,
Variety,
12 May 2026
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Semafor’s journalists helped fill in the gaps by augmenting the readout with reporting that wasn’t captured in the transcript.—
Gina Chua,
semafor.com,
6 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Escalating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/escalating. Accessed 21 May. 2026.
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