Synonyms of escalating

escalating

verb

present participle of escalate

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

• increasing
• rising
• accelerating
• swelling
• expanding
• intensifying
• climbing
• multiplying
• proliferating
• snowballing
• mounting
• accumulating
• waxing
• mushrooming
• ballooning
• spreading
• surging
• burgeoning
• booming
• enlarging
• gaining
• rolling up
• skyrocketing
• heightening
• jumping
• appreciating
• building up
• rocketing
• inflating
• peaking
• redoubling
• distending
• puffing (up)
• cresting
• bulking
• crescendoing
• blowing up

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• decreasing
• diminishing
• contracting
• lessening
• receding
• waning
• dwindling

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

• increasing
• accelerating
• expanding
• boosting
• augmenting
• raising
• multiplying
• extending
• intensifying
• swelling
• enhancing
• stoking
• compounding
• amplifying
• reinforcing
• adding (to)
• enlarging
• upping
• strengthening
• maximizing
• hyping
• skyrocketing
• pumping up
• building up
• aggrandizing
• spiking
• supersizing
• heightening
• supplementing
• booming
• developing
• jumping
• inflating
• prolonging
• lengthening
• stretching
• bumping (up)
• complementing
• distending
• elongating
• drawing out
• dilating
• protracting
• accumulating
• ratcheting (up)
• magnifying
• blowing up
• fleshing (out)
• amassing
• collecting
• racheting (up)
• beefing (up)
• following up
• parlaying

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• reducing
• decreasing
• diminishing
• lowering
• dwindling
• lessening
• downsizing
• subtracting (from)
• abating
• curtailing
• shortening
• de-escalating
• abbreviating
• contracting
• abridging
• compressing
• minifying
• condensing
• constricting
• cutting back
• retrenching

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of escalating

Meanwhile, the escalating price of seafood challenged Darden’s original dream—and parent companies’ finances. — Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 1 Oct. 2026

The allegations by Beam, based in Cambridge, comes amid escalating tensions between American biotechs and their Chinese counterparts. — Elaine Chen, STAT, 30 Sep. 2026

And there’s absolutely no doubt that this one is riding in on top of temperatures already greatly elevated by greenhouse-gas emissions, escalating its impacts. — Bill McKibben, New Yorker, 30 Sep. 2026

But with the concerns surrounding high-profile security breaches escalating, and public sentiment toward AI companies turning decidedly sour heading into the November midterm elections, calls for regulation are only likely to grow louder. — Ari Levy, CNBC, 30 Sep. 2026

Since then, Safe Streets workers have conducted more than 120 successful mediations to prevent potentially violent conflicts from escalating into shootings or homicides. — Adam Thompson, CBS News, 29 Sep. 2026

An international mission in March documented escalating police violence, smear campaigns fueled by public officials, persistent impunity, legal and digital threats and the ruling party's efforts to tighten its grip over the media, CPJ said. — Arkansas Online, 24 Sep. 2026

The repeater tax rate charges a much higher, escalating penalty per dollar spent over the luxury tax, compared to the standard luxury tax penalty. — Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 23 Sep. 2026

An international mission in March documented escalating police violence, smear campaigns fueled by public officials, persistent impunity, legal and digital threats and the ruling party’s efforts to tighten its grip over the media, CPJ said. — ABC News, 23 Sep. 2026