Raise

Part of speech: verb

Pronunciation: /ɹeɪz/

Definitions

1. To move something to a higher position by lifting ; to make a quantity or level greater ; to care for and educate a child or animal ; to bring about or stimulate an event or response
2. To elevate or lift something upward physically ; to boost or augment an amount, price, or intensity ; to nurture or bring up offspring or dependents ; to initiate or prompt a reaction or condition
3. To pick up or elevate to a higher point ; to increase in size, number, or degree ; to rear or provide for the development of a living being ; to incite or evoke a feeling, action, or situation

Etymology: The verb "raise" is a causative: it means "to make something rise." Its root is the verb "rise," and English got the pattern from Old Norse, the language of the Vikings in northern England. Old Norse "reisa" meant "to raise," and it was built on the older verb "rīsa," "to rise." Behind both lies an ancient Indo-European root meaning "to rise, arise," which is why "raise" and "rise" still look so alike. The verb has an unexpected sibling. "Rear," as in "to rear children" or the back of a room, is a doublet of "raise," meaning the two words came into English by different routes from the same source. Old English had several related verbs, including "rǣran," "to raise," and "rāsian," which meant "to explore" or "research," a sense that rests on the same idea of stirring something up.

Synonyms: lift, elevate, hoist, boost, heighten

Antonyms: lower, drop, diminish, reduce, decline