de-escalate
verbUK /diːˈɛskəleɪt/
Etymology From de- + escalate.
1
Ambitransitive To decrease in intensity or magnitude.
- We asked authors to consider two scenarios imaginable in the next five years. In the first scenario, a minor skirmish escalated into a multiweek maritime blockade of Taiwan by China. Although several dozen members of the Chinese and Taiwanese military were killed, U.S. intervention eventually forced China to de-escalate.2026 January 19, Bonnie S. Glaser, Zack Cooper, “A Failed Chinese Invasion of Taiwan Would Be Disastrous for Xi Jinping”, in Foreign Policy, archived from the original on 19 Jan 2026, Analysis:
- Derived terms
- de-escalation