snowballing

verb

present participle of snowball
as in increasing
to become greater in extent, volume, amount, or number the little problems we ignored began to snowball into huge headaches

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of snowballing But efforts in the greater Charlotte area have been snowballing since last fall, with Cornelius overhauling its ordinance in November and Waxhaw and Davidson following suit in February. — Théoden Janes, Charlotte Observer, 7 July 2026 Over the proceeding year and a half, snowballing AI hype has sent valuations in the space soaring to spectacular new heights. — Victor Tangermann, Futurism, 25 June 2026 But just as his mistakes were snowballing downhill, Willis rebounded from one pick and another dropped interception to make what was probably his best throw of the day. — David Furones, Sun Sentinel, 16 June 2026 The codebase becomes harder and harder to manage, so technical debt begins snowballing. — Sebastian Avila, Forbes.com, 5 Mar. 2026 The Mandelson revelations have dominated British media for days, snowballing into one of the country’s biggest political scandals this century. — Christian Edwards, CNN Money, 9 Feb. 2026 This kind of transparency builds safety and keeps small issues from snowballing into resentments. — Molly Burrets, CNBC, 29 Jan. 2026 But the problem began snowballing only late last month, when Grok seemingly granted a large number of user requests to modify images posted by others. — Arkansas Online, 27 Jan. 2026 The result, advocates and doctors say, is that babies with certain genetic diseases are diagnosed only after symptoms start snowballing. — Andrew Joseph, STAT, 27 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for snowballing
  1. increasing
  2. rising
  3. accelerating
  4. swelling
  5. expanding
Verb
  • This increasing self-reliance has an extra benefit in the midst of a grueling war.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Despite this, national reports indicate continued use of performance- and appearance-enhancing drugs, and increasing interest in them.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of increasing
Verb
  • The travel-retail business is expected to continue rising due to a confluence of other factors, including the 4 to 5 percent yearly increase of travelers.
    — Jennifer Weil, Footwear News, 9 Oct. 2026
  • Super El Niño impact Inflation in India has been rising for 10 straight months, crossing the central bank's medium-term target of 4% in August, even as economic growth has been resilient so far.
    — Priyanka Salve, CNBC, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of rising
Verb
  • Leading equipment manufacturers, including Caterpillar, Komatsu, Liebherr, and SANY, are accelerating efforts to deploy zero-emission haul fleets across the industry.
    — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 13 Oct. 2026
  • That 12-month number would signal that the rate of price growth is accelerating and moving further from the Federal Reserve's goal of 2%.
    — Alex Harring, CNBC, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of accelerating
Verb
  • Other possible signs include swelling of part or all of the breast, breast or nipple pain and nipple discharge other than breast milk.
    — Samantha Agate, Miami Herald, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Since the late nineteenth century, raw white-lead was known to pose a substantial health risk to those exposed to it, prompting symptoms such as swelling of the brain, epileptic convulsions, paralysis, severe colic, and death.
    — Wendy S. Walters, Architectural Digest, 12 Oct. 2026
Definition of swelling
Verb
  • That law included provisions dramatically expanding the scope of the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 13 Oct. 2026
  • Altogether, Google is expanding automatic tracking support to cover more than 100 different exercises and sports, up from 10 previously.
    — Andrew Gebhart, PC Magazine, 12 Oct. 2026
Definition of expanding

Browse Nearby Words

snowballed
snowballing
snowballs
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Cite this Entry

“Snowballing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/snowballing. Accessed 15 Oct. 2026.

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