uplift

American  

[uhp-lift, uhp-lift] / ʌpˈlɪft, ˈʌpˌlɪft /

verb (used with object)

• uplifts,
  present (3rd person singular)
• uplifted,
  past participle,  past
• uplifting
  present participle

1. to lift up; raise; elevate.

2. to improve socially, culturally, morally, or the like.

   to uplift downtrodden and deprived peoples.

3. to exalt emotionally or spiritually.

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verb (used without object)

• uplifts,
  present (3rd person singular)
• uplifted,
  past participle,  past
• uplifting
  present participle

1. to become uplifted.

noun

1. an act of lifting up or raising; elevation.

2. the process or work of improving, as socially, intellectually, or morally.

3. emotional or spiritual exaltation.

   Synonyms:

   enhancement, betterment, enrichment

4. a brassiere.

5. Geology. an upheaval.

uplift British  

verb

1. to raise; elevate; lift up

2. to raise morally, spiritually, culturally, etc

3. to collect (a passenger, parcel, etc); pick up

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noun

1. the act, process, or result of lifting up

2. the act or process of bettering moral, social or cultural conditions, etc

3. 1. a brassiere for lifting and supporting the breasts

   2. ( as modifier )

      an uplift bra

4. the process or result of land being raised to a higher level, as during a period of mountain building

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• uplifter
  noun
• upliftment
  noun

Inflected Forms

Participles

• uplifting
  present
• uplifted
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• uplift
  simple
• uplifts
  simple
• have uplifted
  perfect
• has uplifted
  perfect
• am uplifting
  progressive
• are uplifting
  progressive
• is uplifting
  progressive
• have been uplifting
  perfect progressive
• has been uplifting
  perfect progressive

Past

• uplifted
  simple
• had uplifted
  perfect
• was uplifting
  progressive
• were uplifting
  progressive
• had been uplifting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will uplift
  simple
• will have uplifted
  perfect
• will be uplifting
  progressive
• will have been uplifting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of uplift

First recorded in 1300–50, uplift is from the Middle English word upliften. See up-, lift

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

uplift uplifts uplifted uplifting

Beyond this, the force will receive up to £197.8m in funding in the 2026/2027 financial year - a 3.7% uplift in cash.

From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026

They travel beneath continents after tectonic plates begin to separate and have previously been linked to the eruption of diamond volcanoes and mysterious phases of uplift within continents.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 25, 2026

The earnings "uplift appears less pronounced than peers", RBC bank analysts wrote in a note.

From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026

The real-estate investment trust shifted to a revenue-sharing model with the two hospitals, which delivered a pleasant surprise to the REIT’s top line through a 0.8 million Singapore dollar uplift, the analyst says.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026

They were filmmakers from New York City, and they’d been sent to Welch as part of a government program to bring cultural uplift to rural Appalachia.

From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls

“The uncertainty surrounding which companies will experience long-term earnings uplifts from AI helps explain the practical focus of most investors on the near-term earnings impact from AI,” Snider said.

From Barron's ● May 27, 2026

Devlin also questioned how quickly MLAs would receive the money, when nurses have previously had to threaten strike action to get their pay uplifts promised by the Northern Ireland Executive.

From BBC ● Feb. 20, 2026

For each of you talk about making music that uplifts because there are so many great jazz standards that have the point of lifting up the world.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 29, 2026

The government is under pressure from its own MPs to scrap the two-child limit for benefit uplifts.

From BBC ● Nov. 9, 2025

The curious beauty of African music is that it uplifts even as it tells a sad tale.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela

"With this pandemic, I have been sitting at home and this has uplifted me in a way you cannot imagine," Maria Mendiola, who died five years ago, told BBC Scotland.

From BBC ● Jun. 16, 2026

It’s been a week of emotional and intellectual whiplash, but I head into the theater feeling uplifted.

From Slate ● May 8, 2026

UCLA’s bench was uplifted all season by Close’s warm intentionality, learned from years of mentorship from Wooden.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 29, 2026

While artificial intelligence investments and spending by well-off families have powered the robust economic growth, it remains unclear if most households will feel uplifted by this boom.

From Barron's ● Feb. 20, 2026

And the living rod was uplifted in other hands.

From "Go Tell It on the Mountain" by James Baldwin

That story is told in this show, which our critic called “a revelatory and, despite everything, uplifting exhibition.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 6, 2026

His government runs a number of scheme aimed at uplifting women and Modi enjoys tremendous popularity among female voters.

From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026

It wasn’t without faults—primarily its outrageous money grabbing, from the $5,000 nosebleeds to seven figure hospitality “experiences”—but it was largely an uplifting, five-week love bombing from Earth’s most popular sport.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026

President Trump posted on Truth Social that “we loved them and their great and uplifting song.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 1, 2026

A calming, uplifting, terrifying, sorrowful kind of movement, gentle and deadly like the tide.

From "Shadowshaper" by Daniel José Older

Related Words

• excite
• exhilarate
• improve
• lift up