escalate
Americanverb (used with or without object)
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escalates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
escalated,
past participle, past
-
escalating
present participle
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
-
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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Higher Learning: Synonyms For "Up"
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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:
"However, this case underscores the importance of vigilance, strong partnerships with local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies, and the proactive steps taken to identify and investigate suspicious activity before it can escalate."
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026
“Those who escalate chaos and endanger officers will be held accountable. Today’s sentence reflects our commitment to protecting the men and women sworn to keep our communities safe.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026
Your company’s human-resources advocate may also be able to escalate the issue with the insurer or negotiate on your behalf.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 28, 2026
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
Trying to figure out how not to have the situation escalate.
From "The 57 Bus" by Dashka Slater
PlayOn Sports will pay $810,000 in the first year that also escalates 3% each year of the contract.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026
As debate escalates over the implications of open-weight artificial intelligence in both Washington and Silicon Valley, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang made his position clear on Friday.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 24, 2026
Visibility is limited, fear escalates quickly and decisions are made in split seconds.
From Salon ● Jul. 21, 2026
If you book a holiday, then the situation escalates before you buy travel insurance, then less cover may be available.
From BBC ● May 10, 2026
But sometimes she escalates before I even know if the situation calls for escalation.
From "Love, Hate & Other Filters" by Samira Ahmed
Yet the oversight has only escalated, and tensions are rising, too.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026
The UKRI, which has an annual budget of about £10bn, said it has had to cut the observatory's annual £2.8m budget because planned research costs for physics and the running of its labs had escalated.
From BBC ● Aug. 3, 2026
His salary escalated each year, rising to $52.6 million last season.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026
Military hostilities in the Middle East have escalated and investors have become particularly concerned about attacks expanding to the Red Sea.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
Carrie doesn’t seem to notice this; she’s just giddy that he’s come by, that she didn’t dream the whole IM exchange, that chatting has escalated into speaking...and who knows what will happen next?
From "Every Day" by David Levithan
Yemen’s Iranian-allied Houthi rebels are escalating attacks along the country’s Red Sea coast, pushing closer to the key Bab al-Mandeb Strait.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026
“When we first invested in early 2022, investors feared an escalating content arms race among a crowded field of streaming entrants,” Ackman and Israel recalled in the letter.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 13, 2026
"These latest series of attacks follow an alarming pattern of escalating strikes against populated areas," spokesman Farhan Haq told reporters.
From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026
That has now unravelled with what began as a blog a couple of years ago escalating in recent weeks, with more journalists unpicking aspects of Arday's life story and asking questions.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
The intensity with which the family undertook the defense had a self- perpetuating and escalating force: Reggie denied texting, the family backed him up, and Reggie, never someone to let others down, dug in deeper.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
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.
