lift

American  

[lift] / lɪft /

verb (used with object)

• lifts,
  present (3rd person singular)
• lifted,
  past participle,  past
• lifting
  present participle

1. to move or bring (something) upward from the ground or other support to a higher position; hoist.

   Synonyms:

   elevate

   Antonyms:

   lower

2. to raise or direct upward: to lift one's head.

   He lifted his arm in a gesture of farewell;

   to lift one's head.

3. to remove or rescind by an official act, as a ban, curfew, or tax.

   a court decision to lift the ban on strikes by teachers.

4. to stop or put an end to (a boycott, blockade, etc.).

   The citizenry will have to conserve food and water until the siege against the city is lifted.

5. to hold up or display on high.

6. to raise in rank, condition, estimation, etc.; elevate or exalt (sometimes used reflexively): By hard work they lifted themselves from poverty.

   His first book lifted him from obscurity.

   By hard work they lifted themselves from poverty.

7. to make audible or louder, as the voice or something voiced.

   The congregation lifted their voices in song.

8. to transfer from one setting to another.

   For the protagonist of the new play, the author has lifted a character from an early novel.

9. Informal. to plagiarize.

   Whole passages had been lifted from another book.

10. Informal. to steal.

    His wallet was lifted on the crowded subway.

11. airlift.

12. to remove (plants and tubers) from the ground, as after harvest or for transplanting.

13. Horology. (of an escape wheel) to move (a pallet) by moving along the outer, oblique face.

14. to pay off (a mortgage, promissory note, etc.).

15. Golf. to pick up (the ball), as to move it from an unplayable lie.

16. to perform a surgical lift on.

17. Shipbuilding.

    1. to transfer (measurements and the like) from a drawing, model, etc., to a piece being built.

    2. to form (a template) according to a drawing, model, etc.

18. to cease temporarily from directing (fire or bombardment) on an objective or area.

    They lifted the fire when the infantry began to advance.

19. Fox Hunting. to take (hounds) from the line of a fox to where it has just been seen.

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verb (used without object)

• lifts,
  present (3rd person singular)
• lifted,
  past participle,  past
• lifting
  present participle

1. to go up; yield to upward pressure: The lid won't lift.

   The box is too heavy to lift.

   The lid won't lift.

2. to pull or strain upward in the effort to raise something.

   to lift at a heavy weight.

3. to move upward or rise; rise and disperse, as clouds or fog.

4. (of rain) to stop temporarily.

5. to rise to view above the horizon when approached, as land seen from the sea.

noun

• lifts
  plural

1. the act of lifting, raising, or rising.

   the lift of a hand.

2. the distance that anything rises or is raised.

   a lift of 20 feet between canal locks.

3. a lifting or raising force.

   A kite depends on the wind to act as its lift.

4. the weight, load, or quantity lifted.

5. an act or instance of helping to climb or mount.

   He gave her a lift onto the wagon.

6. a ride in a vehicle, especially one given to a pedestrian.

   Can you give me a lift across town?

7. a feeling of exaltation or uplift.

   Their visit gave me quite a lift.

8. assistance or aid.

   The fund-raiser's successful efforts proved a great lift for the organization.

9. a device or apparatus for lifting.

   a hydraulic lift.

10. a movement in which a dancer, skater, etc., lifts up his partner.

11. a cosmetic surgery that lifts and tightens a specified part of the body and removes excess skin and fat: a breast lift;

    an arm lift;

    a breast lift;

    a buttocks lift.

12. Skiing.

    1. ski lift.

    2. chairlift.

13. British.

    1. elevator.

    2. any device used to lift or elevate, as a dumbwaiter or hoist.

14. Informal. a theft.

15. a rise or elevation of ground.

16. Aeronautics. the component of the aerodynamic force exerted by the air on an airfoil, having a direction perpendicular to the direction of motion and causing an aircraft to stay aloft.

17. Nautical.

    1. the capacity of a cargo ship measured in dead-weight tons.

    2. topping lift.

18. one of the layers of leather forming the heel of a boot or shoe.

19. a special arch support built or inserted into footwear.

20. Mining. the slice or thickness of ore mined in one operation.

21. Building Trades. the height of the quantity of concrete poured into a form at one time.

22. Naval Architecture. any of the horizontal planks forming a type of half model lift model, able to be removed and measured as a guide to laying out the water lines of the vessel at full scale.

23. Typesetting. fat.

24. Printing. the quantity of paper loaded into or removed from a press or other printing machine at one time.

25. Horology.

    1. the displacement of a pallet by an escape wheel that has been unlocked.

    2. the angle through which the pallet passes when so displaced.

26. airlift.

lift ¹ British  

/ lɪft /

verb

1. to rise or cause to rise upwards from the ground or another support to a higher place

   to lift a sack

2. to move or cause to move upwards

   to lift one's eyes

3. (tr) to take hold of in order to carry or remove

   to lift something down from a shelf

4. (tr) to raise in status, spirituality, estimation, etc

   his position lifted him from the common crowd

5. (tr) to revoke or rescind

   to lift tax restrictions

6. to make or become audible or louder

   to lift one's voice in song

7. (tr) to take (plants or underground crops) out of the ground for transplanting or harvesting

8. (intr) to disappear by lifting or as if by lifting

   the fog lifted

9. to transport in a vehicle

10. informal (tr) to take unlawfully or dishonourably; steal

11. informal (tr) to make dishonest use of (another person's idea, writing, etc); plagiarize

12. slang (tr) to arrest

13. (tr) to perform a face-lift on

14. (tr) to pay off (a mortgage, etc)

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noun

1. the act or an instance of lifting

2. the power or force available or used for lifting

3. 1. US and Canadian word: elevator.  a platform, compartment, or cage raised or lowered in a vertical shaft to transport persons or goods in a building

   2. See chairlift ski lift

4. the distance or degree to which something is lifted

5. a usually free ride as a passenger in a car or other vehicle

6. a rise in the height of the ground

7. a rise in morale or feeling of cheerfulness usually caused by some specific thing or event

8. the force required to lift an object

9. a layer of the heel of a shoe, etc, or a detachable pad inside the shoe to give the wearer added height

10. aid; help

11. mining

    1. the thickness of ore extracted in one operation

    2. a set of pumps used in a mine

12. 1. the component of the aerodynamic forces acting on a wing, etc, at right angles to the airflow

    2. the upward force exerted by the gas in a balloon, airship, etc

13. See airlift

lift ² British  

/ lɪft /

noun

1. the sky

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lift Scientific  

/ lĭft /

1. An upward force acting on an object. Lift can be produced in many ways; for example, by creating a low-pressure area above an object, such an airplane wing or other airfoil that is moving through the air, or by lowering the overall density of an object relative to the air around it, as with a hot air balloon.

2. Compare drag See also airfoil buoyancy See Note at aerodynamics

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Synonym Usage

See raise.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• lifter
  noun
• underlift
  noun
• liftable
  adjective
• unliftable
  adjective
• unlifted
  adjective
• unlifting
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• lifts
  plural

Participles

• lifting
  present
• lifted
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• lift
  simple
• lifts
  simple
• have lifted
  perfect
• has lifted
  perfect
• am lifting
  progressive
• are lifting
  progressive
• is lifting
  progressive
• have been lifting
  perfect progressive
• has been lifting
  perfect progressive

Past

• lifted
  simple
• had lifted
  perfect
• was lifting
  progressive
• were lifting
  progressive
• had been lifting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will lift
  simple
• will have lifted
  perfect
• will be lifting
  progressive
• will have been lifting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of lift

First recorded in 1250–1300; 1955–60 lift for def. 10; Middle English liften, from Old Norse lypta, derivative of lopt “air,” cognate with German lüften literally, “to take aloft”; see loft

Explanation

To lift something is to pick it up, or raise it in the air. You'll need to lift a flag before you start waving it. You can lift things literally, like when you lift your cat in the air to save it from your dog's slobbery tongue, or lift your glass for a New Year's Eve toast. You can also lift things figuratively, like when someone lifts your spirits, cheering you up, or when winning first prize in a contest lifts a writer from obscurity, elevating her position in the literary world. In Britain, lift is also another word for "elevator."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

lift lifts lifted lifting

“This proceeding was a heavy lift for everyone,” Commissioner Darcie L. Houck acknowledged during Thursday’s hearing, which was held in San Francisco.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026

The key short-term counter measure he announced was to temporarily lift a ban on truck transports on Sundays and public holidays to help ease cargo bottlenecks.

From Barron's ● Aug. 13, 2026

Finally, the Daily Express covers a study that shows taking the stairs instead of the lift could cut your risk of an early death by nearly a quarter.

From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026

Executives told investors that they weren’t satisfied, and they expected a new menu item to lift business later this year.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026

You adjust your shoulders, swing back, lift your legs, hook on the bar.

From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith

“It’s … come to life, die, come back to life, and died. Now our whole discography seems to be in a ‘high tide lifts all ships’ moment.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026

Trump boarded the presidential jet in full view of video cameras and photographers, with AFP pictures showing two supply containers on hydraulic lifts at the front and rear of the aircraft.

From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026

The strenuous, longer lifts are for the offseason.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026

A higher sustainable growth rate lifts the economy’s equilibrium interest rate, or what’s known as R*.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 10, 2026

The wizard holding JP lifts him off his feet.

From "The Manifestor Prophecy" by Angie Thomas

While a tsunami warning was initially issued - leading some 2,000 people to self-evacuate - it was lifted around three hours after the initial jolt, when no significant sea level rise was detected.

From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026

A tsunami warning was later lifted but people were warned not to return to damaged buildings for fear that aftershocks may bring them down.

From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026

Vehicles are placed on metal racks that are lifted by crane and stored in the hold of cargo ships.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026

Puzzled, Gatwood lifted the big block and flipped it over to reveal it was a very large bust of a woman, weighing about 150 pounds.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026

By the time the little boat had been lifted onto the ship, the reef was jagged above the water.

From "Nim’s Island" by Wendy Orr

Nicholas Bednar and Max Sarinsky, came up with a few solutions that Congress could legislate without violating Slaughter, and I do think it’s worth lifting those up.

From Slate ● Aug. 14, 2026

Jefferies maintained its price target of $770 for the stock for 2027, after lifting that target from $510 at the end of June.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026

Does lifting the curfew enhance their chance of winning those series?

From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026

He says he’s squatting more than 500 pounds and lifting 110-pound dumbbells.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026

“Aha,” the mysterious potion brewer says, lifting a vial of blue fluid in one hand.

From "The Sea in Winter" by Christine Day

Related Words

• cancel
• dismantle
• end
• relax
• remove
• rescind
• reverse
• stop