1
as in to increase
to become greater in extent, volume, amount, or number
as the war between the two countries escalated, it threatened to become a global conflict
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Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to accelerate
to make greater in size, amount, or number
the president promised to escalate the government's program to combat the dreaded disease
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of escalate
The changes also escalated the trade war with China.
—
Bailey Schulz, USA Today, 10 Apr. 2025
And in the face of unknowns about how much further measures could escalate, voices from Beijing appear calm.
—Simone McCarthy, CNN Money, 10 Apr. 2025
The White House's move followed a sharp reaction from global financial markets, which had seen trillions in value wiped out due to fears of an escalating trade war.
—Daniel R. Depetris, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Apr. 2025
The announcement came as markets continued to struggle, as escalating trade worries dented investors sentiment and raised worries of a recession.
—Fred Imbert, CNBC, 10 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for escalate
Bailey Schulz, USA Today, 10 Apr. 2025
And in the face of unknowns about how much further measures could escalate, voices from Beijing appear calm.
—Simone McCarthy, CNN Money, 10 Apr. 2025
The White House's move followed a sharp reaction from global financial markets, which had seen trillions in value wiped out due to fears of an escalating trade war.
—Daniel R. Depetris, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Apr. 2025
The announcement came as markets continued to struggle, as escalating trade worries dented investors sentiment and raised worries of a recession.
—Fred Imbert, CNBC, 10 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for escalate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for escalate
Verb
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The European Union has unveiled an $840 billion plan to increase its defense spending, and the German parliament just passed historic constitutional amendments to take on unprecedented levels of debt to facilitate a massive defense investment.—
Elizabeth Shackelford,
Mercury News,
1 Apr. 2025
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This initiative is driven by the goal of establishing a closed-loop raw material cycle and acknowledging the increasing significance of recycled materials in future battery production.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
1 Apr. 2025
Verb
-
The improved coding and long-context capabilities could accelerate software development cycles, enabling developers to tackle more complex problems, analyze legacy code more effectively, or generate code documentation and tests more efficiently.—
Janakiram MSV,
Forbes.com,
15 Apr. 2025
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The blaze accelerated quickly because of the Molotov cocktails, Enterline said.—
Christopher Cann,
USA Today,
14 Apr. 2025
Verb
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These luxe hydrogel eye masks, infused with antioxidant-rich colloidal gold and soothing rose damask extract, brighten and boost radiance in the delicate under-eye area.—
Jake Henry Smith,
Glamour,
17 Apr. 2025
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Shortly after, Wood posted to her story again, this time sharing an April 2022 post from trans British artist Travis Alabanza that highlighted the attention put on trans people rather than other issues, such as the climate crisis or rising cost of living.—
Mathew Rodriguez,
Them.,
17 Apr. 2025
Verb
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That’s the plan at the 49ers’ facility where workers are tearing out the lone artificial surface field in preparation of expanding the team’s grass practice fields.—
Matt Barrows,
New York Times,
10 Apr. 2025
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Now that the charter will expand the incoming council to nine members, if the bill is adopted, changing the line would require six council member votes.—
Luke Parker,
Baltimore Sun,
10 Apr. 2025
Verb
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The agency hopes the undertaking will accommodate population swells on Fort Worth’s western outskirts.—
Jaime Moore-Carrillo,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
9 Apr. 2025
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Before the pandemic, Jackson County Public Health had about 30 employees, but swelled to about 120 during the crisis.—
Jonathan Shorman,
Kansas City Star,
9 Apr. 2025
Verb
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The rubber match has augmented stakes in a Tournament field with increasing parity.—
Steven Louis Goldstein,
New York Times,
28 Mar. 2025
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Attention also could be paid to dismantling foreign anticompetitive market distortions, in order to augment the benefits achieved through the Task Force.—
Alden Abbott,
Forbes.com,
28 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Patterson’s departure likely will intensify UM’s efforts to find a starting caliber safety in the portal.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
15 Apr. 2025
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In this context of uncertainty, competition intensifies on entry and middle market watches.—
Lily Templeton,
Footwear News,
14 Apr. 2025
Verb
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In 2022, a consortium of private retirement-plan providers announced a collaboration to boost the portability of small retirement accounts.—
Daniel de Visé,
USA Today,
20 Apr. 2025
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Software developers will rely on the Switch 2 to boost their game sales, and analysts view the console as a bellwether for the video game industry.—
Dan Bernstein,
Sportico.com,
19 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Escalate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/escalate. Accessed 22 Apr. 2025.
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