as in increased
to become greater in extent, volume, amount, or number
the little problems we ignored began to snowball into huge headaches
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Recent Examples of snowballed
What began as a seasonal special has snowballed into a billion-dollar phenomenon, with copycats and competitors scrambling to ride the wave of fall flavors.
—
Lanee Lee, Forbes.com, 15 Sep. 2025
Hours later, the scandal snowballed after Bloomberg published a trove of emails between Mandelson and Epstein, in which Mandelson expressed support for his friend and offered to discuss his infamous 2008 Florida case with his political contacts.
—Christian Edwards, CNN Money, 11 Sep. 2025
What started as a shoestring campus operation snowballed into a right-wing powerhouse.
—Orianna Rosa Royle, Fortune, 11 Sep. 2025
What began in January with an executive order mandating federal workers to return in-person has snowballed, with firms from Amazon to JP Morgan following suit.
—Eric Twardzik, Robb Report, 8 Sep. 2025
Other discipline errors snowballed after that.
—Jesse Newell, New York Times, 6 Sep. 2025
The tentative reunion quickly snowballed into a full tour and, now, Sublime’s first new music in nearly 30 years.
—Jordan Runtagh, PEOPLE, 4 Sep. 2025
The ongoing comparison of the two turned into an internet frenzy that snowballed into lyrical jabs and shade across interviews and social media.
—Amber Corrine, VIBE.com, 4 Sep. 2025
But since Florida made private school vouchers available to all families regardless of income in 2023, the state budget for vouchers has snowballed from $1 billion to $4 billion.
—Miami Herald, 26 Aug. 2025
Lanee Lee, Forbes.com, 15 Sep. 2025
Hours later, the scandal snowballed after Bloomberg published a trove of emails between Mandelson and Epstein, in which Mandelson expressed support for his friend and offered to discuss his infamous 2008 Florida case with his political contacts.
—Christian Edwards, CNN Money, 11 Sep. 2025
What started as a shoestring campus operation snowballed into a right-wing powerhouse.
—Orianna Rosa Royle, Fortune, 11 Sep. 2025
What began in January with an executive order mandating federal workers to return in-person has snowballed, with firms from Amazon to JP Morgan following suit.
—Eric Twardzik, Robb Report, 8 Sep. 2025
Other discipline errors snowballed after that.
—Jesse Newell, New York Times, 6 Sep. 2025
The tentative reunion quickly snowballed into a full tour and, now, Sublime’s first new music in nearly 30 years.
—Jordan Runtagh, PEOPLE, 4 Sep. 2025
The ongoing comparison of the two turned into an internet frenzy that snowballed into lyrical jabs and shade across interviews and social media.
—Amber Corrine, VIBE.com, 4 Sep. 2025
But since Florida made private school vouchers available to all families regardless of income in 2023, the state budget for vouchers has snowballed from $1 billion to $4 billion.
—Miami Herald, 26 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for snowballed
Verb
-
In recent months, cases in parts of Utah and Arizona have steadily increased.—
Thao Nguyen,
USA Today,
25 Sep. 2025
-
The median sales price increased for just the second time this year on annual basis, despite builders’ wide use of sales incentives.—
Eva Roytburg,
Fortune,
24 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Unrest swelled most recently after eight women died giving birth in a public hospital in Agadir, a large coastal city 300 miles south of Rabat.—
CNN Money,
CNN Money,
28 Sep. 2025
-
By the time Alex Vesia took the mound for the eighth inning, the Dodgers’ lead had swelled by a run thanks to Teoscar Hernandez’s RBI double.—
Bill Plunkett,
Oc Register,
25 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose on the back of Alibaba's jump.—
Yeo Boon Ping,
CNBC,
24 Sep. 2025
-
It’s estimated that, because of the mass burning of fossil fuels, the average temperature throughout the world rose a single degree Celsius during the nineteenth century.—
Ed Simon
September 24,
Literary Hub,
24 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Elaborating on the fiscal policy, Wood highlighted that while the corporate tax rate has remained at 21%, the effective rate could now be as low as 10% once accelerated depreciation on structures, equipment, and domestic R&D is factored in.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
22 Sep. 2025
-
All of these changes point to accelerated aging.—
Pranjal Malewar,
New Atlas,
20 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
According to Beauty Independent, the line, which made its initial debut at Walmart and later expanded to CVS and Ulta, will close its doors for good.—
Kara Nesvig,
Allure,
26 Sep. 2025
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In 2023, the financial firm expanded 10,000 Small Businesses into rural states, specifically, with a $100 million investment.—
Jon Walker,
Arkansas Online,
26 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Warren Buffett’s one-time favorite yardstick for stock market valuations has climbed to an all-time high, reviving fears that investors are once again testing the limits of market exuberance.—
Lim Hui Jie,
CNBC,
29 Sep. 2025
-
Brown climbed the ladder to haul in a pass over the middle from Madsen, beating his defender in the air acrobatically before smashing into the end zone turf for the catch and a 33-14 lead.—
Shaun Goodwin,
Idaho Statesman,
28 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Snowballed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/snowballed. Accessed 30 Sep. 2025.
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