How to Use escalate in a Sentence

escalate

verb
Definition of escalatenext
Synonyms for escalatenext
  • We are trying not to escalate the violence.
  • The conflict has escalated into an all-out war.
  • The cold weather has escalated fuel prices.
  • Salaries of leading executives have continued to escalate.
  • The world is watching to see if the threat will escalate.
    — Cnn.com Wire Service, The Mercury News, 27 Dec. 2024
  • Neither of us has had the heart to escalate, and no doors have been slammed.
    — Saïd Sayrafiezadeh, The New Yorker, 12 June 2023
  • The escalating cheers of the crowd hit a crescendo at 1:47 a.m.
    — David Jackson, USA TODAY, 20 Nov. 2024
  • Deputies were heard trying to de-escalate the shootout.
    — Amanda Rabines, Orlando Sentinel, 27 Jan. 2023
  • The pressure to de-escalate the conflict is likely to grow as the impact is felt around the world.
    — Brian Bennett, Time, 19 May 2022
  • When her symptoms escalate, the idea of a hike (or any kind of workout) is off the table.
    — Condé Nast, SELF, 25 Sep. 2023
  • Someone else screams that the feds are the ones escalating things.
    — Laura Jedeed, The New Republic, 4 Apr. 2023
  • She is overwhelmed by the escalating horrors and the pressures of fame and is forced to face her past.
    — Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 16 Oct. 2024
  • The steady rain of rockets is a reminder that things can escalate very quickly.
    — Adam Goldman Avishag Shaar-Yashuv, New York Times, 13 Nov. 2023
  • Koffler warned that the rhetoric alone from the top nuclear powers could escalate the war in Ukraine.
    — Caitlin McFall, Fox News, 9 Dec. 2022
  • The war of words escalates into a shootout on horseback, with Bass shooting Esau off his horse.
    — Angelique Jackson, Variety, 20 Dec. 2023
  • The feud between Lamar and Drake has escalated since March.
    — Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 8 Aug. 2024
  • The journey to this predicament can be traced back to last year’s sharp rise in mortgage rates, which escalated from 3% to over 7%.
    — Lance Lambert, Fortune, 22 Aug. 2023
  • Scientists first sounded the alarm in April and the ocean warmth has only escalated since.
    — Jennifer Gray, CNN, 17 July 2023
  • The latest news on the escalating conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas.
    — Dasl Yoon, WSJ, 1 Nov. 2023
  • The escalating threat of avian flu has forced farmers to kill millions of chickens to prevent its spread.
    — Alexandra M. Lord, The Conversation, 6 Feb. 2025
  • In the months since, however, gas prices have dropped roughly 26%, even as the war continues to escalate.
    — Will Daniel, Fortune, 22 Sep. 2022
  • With the escalating outbreak driving up egg prices to record highs, could that approach soon change?
    — Berkeley Lovelace Jr., NBC News, 20 Feb. 2025
  • The growth in exports comes as China faces escalated trade tensions with the U.S. and Europe.
    — Rachel Ventresca, Fortune Asia, 7 June 2024
  • Read the rhymes as prose or sing it as a song and enjoy the escalating silliness with each animal the monster swallows.
    — Laura Denby, Parents, 30 Nov. 2023
  • Frictions and tensions at even high levels of the Taliban could escalate.
    — Time, 17 July 2023
  • So younger families and first-time buyers are struggling to be able to afford the prices and rents along with that have escalated as well.
    — Amanda Gokee, BostonGlobe.com, 30 May 2023
  • The incentives in Moore’s original deal were designed to escalate his base salary, rather than pay a one-time bonus.
    — Joel A. Erickson, The Indianapolis Star, 25 May 2022
  • Crude prices have been on a roller coaster in recent weeks as traders tracked the outlook for escalating conflict in the Middle East.
    — Rob Verdonck, Fortune, 14 Oct. 2024
  • When Moritz de Hadeln took the helm of the festival in 1980, Cold War tensions were escalating, yet the festival continued to grow in importance.
    — Steven Gaydos, Variety, 18 Feb. 2025
  • Trump has further escalated the limitations being placed on asylum claims, shutting down the CBP One app that allowed migrants to make appointments at crossings to ask for the status.
    — Austin Denean, Baltimore Sun, 19 Feb. 2025

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'escalate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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