escalate
verb
es·ca·late
ˈe-skə-ˌlāt 
nonstandard
-skyə-
escalated; escalating
: to increase in extent, volume, number, amount, intensity, or scope
a little war threatens to escalate into a huge ugly one—
Arnold Abrams
Arnold AbramsSynonyms
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
Scholz is in China to deliver a delicate message that if Beijing doesn’t heed European warnings to end discriminatory business practices, Brussels will have no choice but to escalate trade defense mechanisms.
—Bloomberg, Fortune Europe, 15 Apr. 2024
Before Iran’s attack, US stocks ended Friday sharply lower, as Wall Street worried about escalating tension in the Middle East.
—Laura He, CNN, 15 Apr. 2024
Their romance escalated in August 2009 when Moyer proposed to Paquin with a vintage-style ring.
—Sabrina Picou, Peoplemag, 14 Apr. 2024
The broader American pressure campaign may also be nudging China to avoid escalating tensions further.
—Olivia Wang, New York Times, 12 Apr. 2024
Against the backdrop of the decades-long shadow war between Iran and Israel that has so far not erupted into larger-scale hostilities, Iran’s philosophy to date has been one of proportional and measured responses that try not to escalate the conflict.
—Javed Ali, The Conversation, 11 Apr. 2024
An extended trailer shows the team navigating dilapidated terrain as tensions escalate, bodies pile up, bones crack and blood starts to spill.
—Matt Donnelly, Variety, 11 Apr. 2024
Geopolitical tensions Writing about higher oil prices Tuesday, Sophie Lund-Yates, lead equity analyst at financial services company Hargreaves Lansdown, singled out escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East following an airstrike on Iran’s embassy in Syria Monday.
—Anna Cooban, CNN, 2 Apr. 2024
But these reforms came with a price, leading to escalating labor costs in Thailand right when nearly half of the country’s shrimp production was wiped out by a disease.
—Ian Urbina, TIME, 1 Apr. 2024
Bloomberg, Fortune Europe, 15 Apr. 2024
Before Iran’s attack, US stocks ended Friday sharply lower, as Wall Street worried about escalating tension in the Middle East.
—Laura He, CNN, 15 Apr. 2024
Their romance escalated in August 2009 when Moyer proposed to Paquin with a vintage-style ring.
—Sabrina Picou, Peoplemag, 14 Apr. 2024
The broader American pressure campaign may also be nudging China to avoid escalating tensions further.
—Olivia Wang, New York Times, 12 Apr. 2024
Against the backdrop of the decades-long shadow war between Iran and Israel that has so far not erupted into larger-scale hostilities, Iran’s philosophy to date has been one of proportional and measured responses that try not to escalate the conflict.
—Javed Ali, The Conversation, 11 Apr. 2024
An extended trailer shows the team navigating dilapidated terrain as tensions escalate, bodies pile up, bones crack and blood starts to spill.
—Matt Donnelly, Variety, 11 Apr. 2024
Geopolitical tensions Writing about higher oil prices Tuesday, Sophie Lund-Yates, lead equity analyst at financial services company Hargreaves Lansdown, singled out escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East following an airstrike on Iran’s embassy in Syria Monday.
—Anna Cooban, CNN, 2 Apr. 2024
But these reforms came with a price, leading to escalating labor costs in Thailand right when nearly half of the country’s shrimp production was wiped out by a disease.
—Ian Urbina, TIME, 1 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'escalate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near escalate
Cite this Entry
“Escalate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/escalate. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
escalate
verb
es·ca·late
ˈes-kə-ˌlāt
escalated; escalating
: to increase in extent, volume, or scope : expand
escalate prices
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