raise
Americanverb (used with object)
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to move to a higher position; lift up; elevate.
to raise one's hand; sleepy birds raising their heads and looking about.
- Synonyms:
- lift
- Antonyms:
- lower
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to set upright.
When the projection screen toppled, he quickly raised it again.
- Synonyms:
- lift
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to cause to rise or stand up; rouse.
The sound of the bugle raised him from his bed.
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to build; erect.
to raise a monument.
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to set up the framework of.
to raise a house.
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to set in motion; activate.
to raise a storm of protest.
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to grow or breed, care for, or promote the growth of.
to raise corn; to raise prizewinning terriers.
- Synonyms:
- cultivate
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to serve in the capacity of parent to; rear.
to raise children.
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to give rise to; bring up or about.
His comments raised a ripple of applause.
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to put forward; present for public consideration.
He raised the issue of his opponent's eligibility.
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Law. to make (an issue at law).
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to restore to life.
to raise the dead.
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to stir up.
to raise a rebellion with stirring speeches.
- Synonyms:
- excite
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to give vigor to; animate.
The news raised his spirits.
- Synonyms:
- inspirit, invigorate
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to advance in rank or position.
to raise someone to the peerage.
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to assemble or collect.
to raise an army; to raise money for a charity.
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to increase the height or vertical measurement of.
The blocks raise the table three inches.
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to increase in degree, intensity, pitch, or force.
to raise the volume of a radio.
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to utter (a cry, shout, etc.) in a loud voice.
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to cause (the voice) to be heard.
to raise one's voice in opposition.
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to cause (dough or bread) to rise by expansion and become light, as by the use of yeast.
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to increase in amount.
to raise rents; to raise salaries.
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to increase (the value or price) of a commodity, stock, bond, etc.
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Poker.
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to increase (another player's bet).
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to bet at a higher level than (a preceding bettor).
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Bridge. to increase (the bid for a contract) by repeating one's partner's bid at a higher level.
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Phonetics. to alter the articulation of (a vowel) by bringing the tongue closer to the palate.
The vowel in “pen” is raised to (i) in some dialects.
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to increase the amount specified in (a check, money order, or the like) by fraudulent alteration.
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Military. to end (a siege) by withdrawing the besieging forces or by compelling the besieging forces to withdraw.
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Nautical.
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to cause (something) to rise above the visible horizon by approaching it.
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to come in sight of (land, a whale, etc.).
-
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to establish communication with by radio.
The radioman was able to raise shore headquarters after three tries.
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Mining. to excavate (an opening) upward from a level below.
verb (used without object)
-
to be able to be lifted or pulled up.
The window raises easily.
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(in cards, poker, etc.) to increase a previous bet or bid.
My cards weren't good enough to let me raise.
noun
-
an increase in amount, as of wages.
a raise in pay.
-
the amount of such an increase.
His raise was five dollars.
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a raising, lifting, etc..
a raise in spirits.
-
a raised or ascending place; rise.
-
Mining. a shaft excavated upward from below.
idioms
verb
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to move, cause to move, or elevate to a higher position or level; lift
-
to set or place in an upright position
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to construct, build, or erect
to raise a barn
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to increase in amount, size, value, etc
to raise prices
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to increase in degree, strength, intensity, etc
to raise one's voice
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to advance in rank or status; promote
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to arouse or awaken from or as if from sleep or death
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to stir up or incite; activate
to raise a mutiny
-
-
to create a boisterous disturbance
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to react or protest heatedly
-
-
to give rise to; cause or provoke
to raise a smile
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to put forward for consideration
to raise a question
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to cause to assemble or gather together; collect
to raise an army
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to grow or cause to grow
to raise a crop
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to bring up; rear
to raise a family
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to cause to be heard or known; utter or express
to raise a shout
to raise a protest
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to bring to an end; remove
to raise a siege
raise a ban
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to cause (dough, bread, etc) to rise, as by the addition of yeast
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poker to bet more than (the previous player)
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bridge to bid (one's partner's suit) at a higher level
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nautical to cause (something) to seem to rise above the horizon by approaching
we raised land after 20 days
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to establish radio communications with
we managed to raise Moscow last night
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to obtain (money, funds, capital, etc)
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to bring (a surface, a design, etc) into relief; cause to project
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to cause (a blister, welt, etc) to form on the skin
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phonetics to modify the articulation of (a vowel) by bringing the tongue closer to the roof of the mouth
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maths to multiply (a number) by itself a specified number of times
8 is 2 raised to the power 3
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to institute (a suit or action at law)
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to draw up (a summons)
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to increase the amount payable on (a cheque, money order, etc) fraudulently
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curling to push (a stone) towards the tee with another stone
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Also: raise one's eyebrows. to look quizzical or surprised
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to give rise to doubt or disapproval
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to drink the health of; drink a toast to
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old-fashioned to take one's hat briefly off one's head as a greeting or mark of respect
noun
-
the act or an instance of raising
-
an increase, esp in salary, wages, etc; rise
Commonly Confused
Raise and rise are similar in form and meaning but different in grammatical use. Raise is the causative of rise; to raise something is to cause it to rise. Raise is almost always used transitively. Its forms are regular: Raise the window. The flag had been raised before we arrived. Raise in the intransitive sense “to rise up, arise” is nonstandard: Dough raises better when the temperature is warm. Rise is almost exclusively intransitive in its standard uses. Its forms are irregular: My husband usually rises before seven. The earliest I have ever risen is eight. The sun rose in a cloudless sky. The dough is rising now. Both raise and rear are used in the United States to refer to the upbringing of children. Although raise was formerly condemned in this sense (“You raise hogs but you rear children”), it is now standard. In American English, a person receives a raise in salary. In British English it is a rise.
Related Words
Raise, lift, heave, hoist imply bringing something up above its original position. Raise, the most general word, may mean to bring something to or toward an upright position with one end resting on the ground; or it may be used in the sense of lift, moving an object a comparatively short distance upward but breaking completely its physical contact with the place where it had been: to raise a ladder; to raise ( lift ) a package. Heave implies lifting with effort or exertion: to heave a huge box onto a truck. Hoist implies lifting slowly and gradually something of considerable weight, usually with mechanical help, such as given by a crane or derrick: to hoist steel beams to the top of the framework of a building.
Other Word Forms
- nonraisable adjective
- nonraiseable adjective
- raisable adjective
- raiseable adjective
- raiser noun
- reraise verb (used with object)
- unraisable adjective
- unraiseable adjective
Etymology
Origin of raise
First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English reisen (verb), from Scandinavian (compare Old Norse reisa ); compare also Gothic -raisjan (causative verb formed on Germanic base of Old English rīsan “to rise” ( rise ), Old English rǣran “to rear up” ( rear 2 )
Explanation
If you raise your hand, you put it up in the air. If you raise your daughter, you “bring her up” from childhood to adulthood. And, if you raise the roof, you and a crowd of people cheer wildly for a performer. Raise can be used almost any time you bring something up, either literally: “if you raise the lid on that trap door you will see a secret passage,” or figuratively: “please don't raise the topic of my arachnophobia.” The verb raise comes from the Old English word ræran, which means “to rear,” as in, “do you really want to raise your children in that town?” As a noun, a raise can also mean a salary increase.
Vocabulary lists containing raise
The SAT: Multiple-Meaning Words, List 1
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The Best Starting Words for Wordle
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Motherlode: A Mother's Day Lexicon
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Scottish Labour has pledged not to raise income tax for the duration of the next Holyrood parliament, and party leader Anas Sarwar has promised to maintain the Scottish Child Payment.
From BBC • Apr. 11, 2026
Let’s raise a glass of champagne to you, your guests — and Uncle Sam.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 11, 2026
Rising consumer inflation has a silver lining for retirees: It could raise their cost-of-living adjustment as well.
From Barron's • Apr. 10, 2026
In a recent update, AALA/Teamsters 2010 said it is seeking a 7% raise for the current school year and 6% for next year.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 10, 2026
Families have filled up the green picnic tables, and they nod or raise a hand in greeting.
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
