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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This Week in Words: October 22 - 27, 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.
“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
Would that escalate to a worldwide nuclear war?
From Salon • Jun. 15, 2026
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan stressed "the need to avoid rhetoric, provocations, and actions that could escalate tensions in the period leading up to the signing of the agreement, and to remain vigilant against possible sabotage."
From Barron's • Jun. 15, 2026
Hitting Kuwait signaled a willingness to escalate but without hitting more sensitive sites in the Gulf’s more powerful states that have previously struck back against Iran.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 4, 2026
The terrible sounds he’d heard escalate for the last hour took on a high-pitched, mechanical squeal, like a robotic death yell.
From "The Maze Runner" by James Dashner
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.
