as in increased
to become greater in extent, volume, amount, or number
the little problems we ignored began to snowball into huge headaches
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Recent Examples of snowballed
The situation snowballed into what many viewed as a fractured relationship between Reese, her teammates and the front office.
—
Amber Harding Outkick, FOXNews.com, 29 Apr. 2026
Four years later, the original concept has snowballed into a luxury hotel and working regenerative farm in the same model as South Africa’s Babylonstoren or Somerset’s The Newt, with grander plans still to come.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 Apr. 2026
Then Yuki Matsui tweaked his groin in spring training, some soft contact snowballed on Adrián Morejón and Estrada began losing zip on his fastball.
—Jeff Sanders, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Apr. 2026
They were considered a distant contender as the eighth championship favorite — before the injuries snowballed and created this predicament.
—Douglas Kezirian, New York Times, 9 Apr. 2026
On the other end, James missed consecutive free throws, which snowballed when Flagg followed with a jumper to push Dallas’ advantage back to 10 points.
—Benjamin Royer, Oc Register, 6 Apr. 2026
That energy on both ends of the court had snowballed.
—Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 29 Mar. 2026
Once the wine was bottled, things snowballed rather quickly.
—Mike Desimone, Robb Report, 22 Mar. 2026
After that, Adams' troubles snowballed quickly.
—Beth Warren, Nashville Tennessean, 3 Mar. 2026
Amber Harding Outkick, FOXNews.com, 29 Apr. 2026
Four years later, the original concept has snowballed into a luxury hotel and working regenerative farm in the same model as South Africa’s Babylonstoren or Somerset’s The Newt, with grander plans still to come.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 Apr. 2026
Then Yuki Matsui tweaked his groin in spring training, some soft contact snowballed on Adrián Morejón and Estrada began losing zip on his fastball.
—Jeff Sanders, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Apr. 2026
They were considered a distant contender as the eighth championship favorite — before the injuries snowballed and created this predicament.
—Douglas Kezirian, New York Times, 9 Apr. 2026
On the other end, James missed consecutive free throws, which snowballed when Flagg followed with a jumper to push Dallas’ advantage back to 10 points.
—Benjamin Royer, Oc Register, 6 Apr. 2026
That energy on both ends of the court had snowballed.
—Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 29 Mar. 2026
Once the wine was bottled, things snowballed rather quickly.
—Mike Desimone, Robb Report, 22 Mar. 2026
After that, Adams' troubles snowballed quickly.
—Beth Warren, Nashville Tennessean, 3 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for snowballed
Verb
-
In Washington, teacher pay increased 36%.—
Cory Turner,
NPR,
27 Apr. 2026
-
Since then, and despite some notable lapses, the agency has steadily increased its protective methodologies, techniques and technologies to mitigate threats of varying degrees.—
Donald J. Mihalek,
ABC News,
27 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Now, more than 40 years — and a huge bull market — later, those accounts have swelled into significant dollars.—
Terry Savage,
Chicago Tribune,
30 Apr. 2026
-
Spring rains and winter snowmelt have swelled rivers and lakes, forcing torrents of water through Cheboygan County communities on its way to Lake Huron.—
Sarah Brumfield,
Los Angeles Times,
23 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
His numbers rose from 246 total yards in his first three seasons to 717 in his senior campaign alone.—
Alec Lewis,
New York Times,
27 Apr. 2026
-
Emerging-market equities rose to a record high, buoyed by optimism over the artificial intelligence trade and a report that Iran offered a new proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.—
Marcus Wong,
Bloomberg,
27 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
And those efforts have only accelerated, especially since the debut of generative AI chatbots in 2022 and recent advances in agentic AI.—
Jeremy Kahn,
Fortune,
28 Apr. 2026
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The three ports also have accelerated their alternative fuels bunkering capabilities over the past three years.—
Jennifer Bringle,
Footwear News,
28 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
As information and knowledge expanded, staying current required a significant investment of their time.—
Bruce Broussard,
Fortune,
29 Apr. 2026
-
After a test launch in Jacksonville and Orlando, Winn-Dixie expanded its same-day Amazon delivery partnership to Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach.—
Howard Cohen,
Miami Herald,
29 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Snowballed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/snowballed. Accessed 1 May. 2026.
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