snowball effect
noun
: a situation in which one action or event causes many other similar actions or events
The city hopes that these improvements will have a snowball effect and spur private investment in the community.
Examples of snowball effect in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
That started a snowball effect of thinking of all the lists in my life.
—
Natalie Jamieson, Variety, 6 Dec. 2025
Mobile started a snowball effect, and by 2000 the restaurant started a small-scale catering operation.
—Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 31 Oct. 2025
Neon is looking for a snowball effect with strong press and word of mouth as the season picks up.
—Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 19 Oct. 2025
What happened next was a snowball effect – as small stray details were subsumed into a big imagined coverup by the White House.
—Brian Stelter, CNN Money, 2 Sep. 2025
Then there are considerations about tooling and suppliers: Designing using fewer parts has an economic snowball effect on costs.
—Roberto Baldwin, ArsTechnica, 2 Sep. 2025
Acuña to the Royals is the type of what-if move that would've had quite the snowball effect on MLB.
—Andrew Wright, MSNBC Newsweek, 26 Aug. 2025
The lack of services leads to people getting stuck in the system, creating a snowball effect, said Steve Berg, chief policy officer for the National Alliance to End Homelessness.
—Spencer Norris, ProPublica, 1 July 2025
The issue started a snowball effect that ended with Boston trading Devers to the National League West team.
—Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 17 June 2025
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Natalie Jamieson, Variety, 6 Dec. 2025
Mobile started a snowball effect, and by 2000 the restaurant started a small-scale catering operation.
—Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 31 Oct. 2025
Neon is looking for a snowball effect with strong press and word of mouth as the season picks up.
—Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 19 Oct. 2025
What happened next was a snowball effect – as small stray details were subsumed into a big imagined coverup by the White House.
—Brian Stelter, CNN Money, 2 Sep. 2025
Then there are considerations about tooling and suppliers: Designing using fewer parts has an economic snowball effect on costs.
—Roberto Baldwin, ArsTechnica, 2 Sep. 2025
Acuña to the Royals is the type of what-if move that would've had quite the snowball effect on MLB.
—Andrew Wright, MSNBC Newsweek, 26 Aug. 2025
The lack of services leads to people getting stuck in the system, creating a snowball effect, said Steve Berg, chief policy officer for the National Alliance to End Homelessness.
—Spencer Norris, ProPublica, 1 July 2025
The issue started a snowball effect that ended with Boston trading Devers to the National League West team.
—Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 17 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Snowball effect.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/snowball%20effect. Accessed 20 Dec. 2025.
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