escalate
[ es-kuh-leyt ]
/ ˈɛs kəˌleɪt /
Save This Word!
verb (used with or without object), es·ca·lat·ed, es·ca·lat·ing.
to increase in intensity, magnitude, etc.: to escalate a war; a time when prices escalate.
to raise, lower, rise, or descend on or as if on an escalator.
QUIZ
THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?
Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.
Question 1 of 7
In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…
Origin of escalate
First recorded in 1920–25; back formation from escalator
how to pronounce escalate
See percolate.
OTHER WORDS FROM escalate
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use escalate in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for escalate
escalate
/ (ˈɛskəˌleɪt) /
verb
to increase or be increased in extent, intensity, or magnitudeto escalate a war; prices escalated because of inflation
Derived forms of escalate
escalation, nounWord Origin for escalate
C20: back formation from escalator
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012