escalate
Americanverb
Pronunciation
See percolate.
Other Word Forms
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.
US Central Command also said it was not seeking to escalate the conflict.
From BBC • May 7, 2026
Faced with the choice of whether to continue enduring the American naval blockade, or to escalate, they have decided to escalate, though still stopping short of a full-blown war.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 6, 2026
Some of the world’s most established carbon markets “are struggling to escalate climate action in the face of energy and geopolitical concerns,” according to LSEG’s Carbon Market Outlook 2026.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 28, 2026
"If tensions were to escalate further, particularly into open conflict, there's a clear risk of a sharper spike," he wrote.
From Barron's • Apr. 27, 2026
Trying to figure out how not to have the situation escalate.
From "The 57 Bus" by Dashka Slater
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.
