snowballing

verb

present participle of snowball
as in increasing
to become greater in extent, volume, amount, or number the little problems we ignored began to snowball into huge headaches

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of snowballing This kind of transparency builds safety and keeps small issues from snowballing into resentments. — Molly Burrets, CNBC, 29 Jan. 2026 The codebase becomes harder and harder to manage, so technical debt begins snowballing. — Sebastian Avila, Forbes.com, 5 Mar. 2026 Over the proceeding year and a half, snowballing AI hype has sent valuations in the space soaring to spectacular new heights. — Victor Tangermann, Futurism, 25 June 2026 But just as his mistakes were snowballing downhill, Willis rebounded from one pick and another dropped interception to make what was probably his best throw of the day. — David Furones, Sun Sentinel, 16 June 2026 But the problem began snowballing only late last month when Grok seemingly granted a large number of user requests to modify images posted by others. — Kelvin Chan, Chicago Tribune, 26 Jan. 2026 The result, advocates and doctors say, is that babies with certain genetic diseases are diagnosed only after symptoms start snowballing. — Andrew Joseph, STAT, 27 Jan. 2026 But the problem began snowballing only late last month, when Grok seemingly granted a large number of user requests to modify images posted by others. — Arkansas Online, 27 Jan. 2026 The Mandelson revelations have dominated British media for days, snowballing into one of the country’s biggest political scandals this century. — Christian Edwards, CNN Money, 9 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for snowballing
  1. increasing
  2. rising
  3. accelerating
  4. swelling
  5. expanding
Verb
  • As summer arrives, snow begins melting, ice hardens and rocks loosen, increasing the risk of falls and rockfall.
    — Jasmine Baehr, FOXNews.com, 2 July 2026
  • When patients can’t pay, hospitals absorb the costs and pass them onto people with insurance by increasing prices, studies show.
    — Alana Semuels, Time, 1 July 2026
Definition of increasing
Verb
  • And each time another first-time climber reaches the top, the applause rising from the rocks below suggests that, little by little, that community is growing.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 5 July 2026
  • Practices are seeing rising amputations, and hospitalizations are surging.
    — Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 5 July 2026
Definition of rising
Verb
  • The financial struggles led to them not being able to pay vendors, which led key brands to stop sending the retailers products to sell, further accelerating its decline.
    — Jeremy Repanich, Robb Report, 30 June 2026
  • The move comes amid rising demand for local asset servicing, with Saudi Arabia accelerating the development of its capital markets as part of its Vision 2030 agenda.
    — Melissa Hancock, Fortune, 30 June 2026
Definition of accelerating
Verb
  • However, due to swelling, Lasko still doesn’t have feeling in his lower half just yet.
    — Scott Thompson, FOXNews.com, 3 July 2026
  • The pair were pushed into the body wherever swelling threatened a patient’s health, or exploration of an inner cavity was warranted.
    — Katherine Ott, The Conversation, 2 July 2026
Definition of swelling
Verb
  • The 585-acre neighborhood contains 5 million square feet of office space, including 250,000 square feet of medical offices where John Muir Health has been expanding.
    — George Avalos, Mercury News, 6 July 2026
  • The mission won't just hunt for aliens, but rather explore these habitable planets and their atmospheres, expanding our understanding of other worlds while also being used for a variety of astronomical purposes.
    — Chelsea Gohd, Space.com, 6 July 2026
Definition of expanding

Browse Nearby Words

snowballed
snowballing
snowballs
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Cite this Entry

“Snowballing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/snowballing. Accessed 8 Jul. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on snowballing

Nglish: Translation of snowballing for Spanish Speakers

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