escalate
Americanverb (used with or without object)
verb
Pronunciation
See percolate.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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escalationnoun
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reescalationnoun
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reescalateverb
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escalatoryadjective
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nonescalatingadjective
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nonescalatoryadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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escalatesimple
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escalatessimple
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have escalatedperfect
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has escalatedperfect
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am escalatingprogressive
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are escalatingprogressive
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is escalatingprogressive
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have been escalatingperfect progressive
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has been escalatingperfect progressive
Past
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escalatedsimple
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had escalatedperfect
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was escalatingprogressive
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were escalatingprogressive
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had been escalatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of escalate
First recorded in 1920–25; back formation from escalator
Explanation
If an argument between you and your brother progresses from mean looks to a fist fight, you could say that the tension between the two of you escalated. To escalate is intensify or increase quickly. When you see this word, picture an escalator that takes you up to the next floor quickly. But remember, there's something you don't like on that higher level because it's usually bad if something escalates. Prices escalate when something becomes scarce, be it a popular toy, a concert ticket, or food during a crisis. And if a war or conflict escalates, it becomes more intense and violent.
Vocabulary lists containing escalate
This Week in Words: September 25 - October 1, 2017
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Plans to escalate the campaign have been shelved in part because of those shrinking supplies, The New York Times reported, citing two people briefed on the matter.
From Barron's ● Jul. 26, 2026
This would escalate to "requests for money or valuables under false pretences - such as urgent medical needs, travel expenses or investment opportunities".
From BBC ● Jul. 9, 2026
Iran, which lost many of its top leaders early in the war, may not want to escalate things too much either.
From Slate ● Jul. 9, 2026
“Keep your responses brief, stick to information, be friendly and firm. Try to answer in a way that doesn’t escalate conflict,” he said.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 30, 2026
It's time to think bigger, to escalate the pamphlet campaign, to enlarge his circle so that more Germans learn the truth.
From "The Boy Who Dared" by Susan Campbell Bartoletti
Visibility is limited, fear escalates quickly and decisions are made in split seconds.
From Salon ● Jul. 21, 2026
Read more: U.S. inflation rate escalates to three-year high.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 2, 2026
Canada’s banks fortified their financial position and can lend if the Iran war escalates, leading to prolonged high energy prices.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 28, 2026
The independent review led by Dr Jan Melia found "when police endorse misogyny, as they do here, risk to women escalates".
From BBC ● May 5, 2026
“Doesn’t my opinion matter?” he asks one evening, before the conversation escalates to door slamming.
From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern
As tensions escalated between him and a customer service agent, he took out his phone and began recording.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
The threats escalated on Tuesday, with the Yemeni group, which controls part of the civil-war-ravaged country, warning shipping companies to avoid all Saudi Arabian ports, according to multiple reports on Tuesday.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 21, 2026
But the intensity has rapidly escalated over the past week, with nearly 2.8 million hectares burned since the start of the year, per the latest government figures.
From Barron's ● Jul. 17, 2026
The ships, which aren’t equipped with missile defense, had to be moved out of Bahrain as hostilities between the U.S. and Iran escalated earlier this year.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026
“This escalated so quickly,” I muttered as another text came in.
From "Bye Forever, I Guess" by Jodi Meadows
Cooper also cited Drakeo’s 2021 song “IngleWeird,” interviews and music released by artists associated with the two camps as evidence of an escalating dispute.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 25, 2026
The recent clashes with Saudi Arabia, coupled with escalating U.S. military action against Iran, have emboldened the Houthis to step in, analysts say.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026
The main international oil contract Brent North Sea fell back under $100 Friday after surging past the key milestone the previous day on escalating Middle East strikes, helping US and European stock markets stabilise.
From Barron's ● Jul. 24, 2026
"The uncomfortable truth is that too many organisations are still defending at human speed while adversaries are escalating to machine speed," he said.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
LeAlan: What do you think needs to be done to communities like The Wells to keep youth crimes from escalating?
From "Our America: Life and Death on the South Side of Chicago" by LeAlan Jones
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
