snowball

Definition from Wiktionary, a free dictionary

Contents 1 English 1.1 Pronunciation 1.2 Noun 1.2.1 Derived terms 1.2.2 Translations 1.3 Verb 1.3.1 Derived terms 1.3.2 Translations

[edit] English

Wikipedia

[edit] Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA: /ˈsnəʊbɔːl/, SAMPA: /"sn@UbO:l/
• (US) enPR: snōʹbôl, IPA: /ˈsnoʊbɔːl/, SAMPA: /"sn@UbO:l/
•  Audio (US)^{help, file}

[edit] Noun

snowball (plural snowballs)

1. A ball of snow, usually one made in the hand and thrown for amusement in a snowball fight; also a larger ball of snow made by rolling a snowball around in snow that sticks to it and increases its diameter.
2. A cocktail made from lemonade and advocaat.
3. (figuratively) Something that snowballs (grows rapidly out of control).
   • 2005, Eldad Ben-Yosef, The Evolution of the US Airline Industry

     Representatives of the small airlines that felt betrayed by Brown's policy started a political snowball rolling, resulting in the Airmail Act of 1934...

[edit] Derived terms

a snowball’s chance, a snowball’s chance in an oven, a snowball’s chance in hell besnowball cast snowballs Chinese snowball New York snowball snowball bush snowball cactus Snowball Earth hypothesis

snowball effect snowball fight snowball hammer snowball marches snowball opacity snowball prime snowball sampling snowball tree

[edit] Translations

[edit] Verb

to snowball (third-person singular simple present snowballs, present participle snowballing, simple past and past participle snowballed)

1. (intransitive) To rapidly grow out of proportion or control.

   The high unemployment rates quickly snowballed into a major budget problem for the government.

2. (intransitive) To play at throwing snowballs.
3. (intransitive) (sexual slang) To receive a man's ejaculate in one's mouth, and then to pass it back and forth between one's mouth and his.

[edit] Derived terms

• snowballing

[edit] Translations