snowballing
Meaning
(of a plan, problem, activity, etc.) to grow or develop at an increasingly rapid rate
(of a person) to throw snowballs at someone
Structure
Usage
The project's costs began snowballing after the initial delays.
Once the rumor started, the controversy kept snowballing out of control.
The children spent the afternoon snowballing each other in the park.
Etymology
The verb 'snowball' originates from the noun compound 'snowball', which literally describes a ball made of snow. The noun 'snow' has Proto-Germanic roots (snaiwaz), while 'ball' traces back to a Proto-Germanic word for a round mass (balluz). The figurative sense of rapid, self-accelerating growth emerged in the early 20th century, drawing a vivid analogy to how a snowball increases dramatically in size and momentum as it rolls downhill, gathering more snow. This metaphorical leap transformed a simple winter activity into a powerful descriptor for exponential processes in finance, social trends, and problem escalation.
Analysis
snow: Old English 'snaw', a noun referring to frozen atmospheric vapor. ball: Old English 'beall', a noun referring to a rounded object. ing: Old English '-ende', a suffix forming the present participle of verbs.