as in increases
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 snowballs
That metaphysical connection soon snowballs into a mounting existential threat when Mia (Sophie Wilde) allows her best friend's eager little brother to have one round with the hand, after which his body is never the same.
—
Dennis Perkins, Entertainment Weekly, 31 Oct. 2025
Sometimes that snowballs for a defense.
—Kirk Kenney, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Sep. 2025
Dennis Perkins, Entertainment Weekly, 31 Oct. 2025
Sometimes that snowballs for a defense.
—Kirk Kenney, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for snowballs
Verb
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Red meat likely increases blood pressure due to byproducts from chemical reactions that happen in the liver and gut.—
Sarah Bence,
Verywell Health,
15 Jan. 2026
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Being stuck in a state of fight-or-flight increases protective muscle tension, altering movement mechanics, limiting mobility, and increasing the likelihood of compensations that can lead to pain or injury.—
Dana Santas,
CNN Money,
14 Jan. 2026
Verb
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At Sainte-Chapelle, the ticket rises to 22 euros for visitors from outside those countries, versus 16 euros for those within them, according to heritage officials.—
Thomas Adamson,
Fortune,
14 Jan. 2026
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Marital discord rises amid the chaos of the holidays.—
Daniel de Visé,
USA Today,
14 Jan. 2026
Verb
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While the number of retirees swells, the pool of workers funding the social safety net — and caring for the aging population — is narrowing.—
Eva Roytburg,
Fortune,
7 Jan. 2026
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There's a sort of a natural world religiousness or spirituality or philosophy that swells around a lot of things and different characters.—
Rebecca Ford,
Vanity Fair,
6 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Adoption accelerates when employees feel ownership.—
Paul Eremenko,
Fortune,
14 Jan. 2026
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That visibility accelerates learning and increases the likelihood of detection and arrest.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
13 Jan. 2026
Verb
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On Livonia Avenue, community navigator Troy Johnson climbs behind the wheel of the van, which functions as a mobile office for Brooklyn Justice Initiatives staff.—
Hannah Kliger,
CBS News,
13 Jan. 2026
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SpaceX has opted to bring its Crew Dragon spacecraft home a few times before the relief crew arrives, but normally there’s a few days of handoff where the station population climbs to 11.—
Richard Tribou,
The Orlando Sentinel,
12 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Snowballs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/snowballs. Accessed 17 Jan. 2026.
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