noun
snowballing; snowball effect
Describes a phenomenon where something grows or accumulates rapidly, like a snowball rolling downhill. Often used in economic or social contexts.
借金が雪だるま式に増えていった。
The debt snowballed.
噂は雪だるま式に広がった。
The rumor spread like a snowball.
Standard modern spelling using だるま in kana.
Kanji spelling for だるま; less common and may appear in older or formal texts.
雪だるま means 'snowman', while 雪だるま式 is the derived noun meaning 'snowballing'.
Compound of 雪だるま (snowman) + 式 (style, method), literally 'snowman-style', referring to the way a snowball grows as it rolls.