Levering

Part of speech: verb, noun

Definitions

1. The act of using a tool or device to lift or move an object with mechanical advantage
2. A technique involving any form of leverage to manipulate forces for greater effect
3. The process of applying force through a bar, arm, or similar mechanism to gain an advantage in lifting or shifting weight

Etymology: The verb "lever" traces back to Latin "levō", "to raise", which gave Latin "levātor", "a lifter". That noun passed into Old French as "leveor" or "leveur", and Middle English took it up as "lever" or "levore" for a bar used to lift or pry. Because the bar's job is raising heavy things, the word stayed tied to lifting from the start. A near-twin of the same Latin source, "levator", survives in English as a term for a muscle that raises a body part. Its "-ing" form, "levering", is simply the verb put into action: using a bar to shift or raise something. Nothing more is needed to explain it beyond the verb itself.

Synonyms: prying, lifting, leveraging, hoisting, raising

Antonyms: lowering, dropping, releasing, letting go, descending