snow·ball ˈsnōˌbôl
noun
noun snowball plural noun snowballs
- a ball of packed snow, especially one made for throwing at other people for fun.
- a thing that grows rapidly in intensity or importance.
- a cocktail containing gin, anisette, and cream.
- a dessert resembling a ball of snow, especially one containing or covered in ice cream.
verb
verb snowball 3rd person present snowballs past tense snowballed past participle snowballed gerund or present participle snowballing
- throw snowballs at.
- increase rapidly in size, intensity, or importance.
That second verb definition attaches itself to proliferate. The snowball effect.
Escalate