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

The escalating conflict pushed Brent crude, the international benchmark, from about $71 a barrel at the start of the month to above $100 by July 23. — Mary Cunningham, CBS News, 12 Aug. 2026

Shakur’s killing capped a series of escalating threats involving a group of people tied to Compton gangs, including Davis. — Richard Winton, Los Angeles Times, 12 Aug. 2026

What the outbreak means for Americans Despite the escalating death toll in Africa, health officials emphasize that the average American faces very little threat from Ebola. — Khloe Quill, FOXNews.com, 12 Aug. 2026

The president’s ruse to leave Turkey came at a point where the war with Iran was escalating. — Michael Loria, USA Today, 11 Aug. 2026

The escalating tally underscores how far the two sides remain from resolving a crisis that has choked the Strait of Hormuz for more than five months. — Anniek Bao, CNBC, 10 Aug. 2026

Their escalating ambitions threaten to tear the community apart. — John Hopewell, Variety, 5 Aug. 2026

Nvidia top engineers may use over $250,000 per year in tokens, and Meta is starting to cap tokens used by employees due to escalating costs. — Steven Carlini, Forbes.com, 4 Aug. 2026

Just as the tension on deck is escalating, Nathan tweaks his back putting down the water toys. — Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 4 Aug. 2026