What does "raise" mean?

1. (to lift up) to move something to a higher position. 2. (to care for children) to look after a child or animal until they are fully grown. 3. (to collect money) to gather money together for a specific purpose, like a charity. 4. (to mention a topic) to bring up a subject or a problem so people can talk about it. 5. (to increase an amount) to make an amount, level, or price higher. 6. (increase in pay) an increase in the money you earn from your job. 7. (betting) an increase in the amount of a bet in a game like poker.

raise — meaning, definition & examples

Q: Is it correct to say "The sun raises in the east."?

No — say "The sun rises in the east.". Use 'raise' when you lift something else. Use 'rise' when something moves up by itself.

Word

01to lift up

A2 · Elementary

v. to move something to a higher position.

v. to move something to a higher vertical position; transitive, requiring a direct object.

“Please raise your hand if you have a question about the homework.”

“The workers used a heavy-duty crane to raise the steel beams to the top floor of the construction site.”

Pitfall

The sun raises in the east.

The sun rises in the east.

Use 'raise' when you lift something else. Use 'rise' when something moves up by itself.

Synonyms

lift elevate hoist

Antonyms

lower drop

02to care for children

B1 · Intermediate

v. to look after a child or animal until they are fully grown.

v. to nurture and support a child or animal through its growth to maturity.

“She was raised by her grandparents in a small town near the coast.”

“Raising children in a bilingual household requires consistent effort from both parents to ensure fluency in both languages.”

Synonyms

rear bring up nurture

03to collect money

B1 · Intermediate

v. to gather money together for a specific purpose, like a charity.

v. to collect or amass funds, especially for a philanthropic or commercial venture.

“The school held a bake sale to raise money for new library books.”

“The non-profit organisation managed to raise over two million dollars during their annual gala for cancer research.”

Synonyms

collect gather accumulate

Antonyms

spend donate

04to mention a topic

B2 · Upper Intermediate

v. to bring up a subject or a problem so people can talk about it.

v. to introduce a subject, issue, or question for consideration or debate.

“I plan to raise the issue of office heating at the next meeting.”

“The auditor raised several concerns regarding the company's recent acquisition of its smaller competitor.”

Synonyms

broach introduce mention

Antonyms

ignore suppress

05to increase an amount

B1 · Intermediate

v. to make an amount, level, or price higher.

v. to cause an increase in the level, amount, or strength of something.

“The central bank decided to raise interest rates to control inflation.”

“The sudden surge in demand for electric vehicles has raised expectations for the company's quarterly earnings report.”

Synonyms

increase boost heighten

Antonyms

decrease lower reduce

06increase in pay

A2 · Elementary Countable noun American English

n. an increase in the money you earn from your job.

n. an increase in salary or wages.

“After working there for a year, she finally asked her boss for a raise.”

“The union negotiated a five percent raise for all staff members to offset the rising cost of living.”

Usage

In British English, 'pay rise' is the standard term.

Teaching tip

Learners should be aware that 'raise' as a noun for salary is primarily American; 'rise' is used in the UK.

Synonyms

pay riseincrease increment

Antonyms

pay cut

07betting

B2 · Upper Intermediate Countable noun

n. an increase in the amount of a bet in a game like poker.

n. an increase in the amount of a previous wager in a gambling context.

“He made a large raise to scare the other players into folding.”

“The professional player responded with a significant raise, forcing his opponent to reconsider the strength of his own hand.”

Synonyms

re-raise

Antonyms

fold call

Common phrases and expressions where native English speakers use the word “raise” in context.

01. finding raise 02. raise level 03. raise rate

raise vs rise

Rise is an intransitive verb meaning to move upward, while raise is a transitive verb meaning to lift something else.

RememberRise happens on its own; Raise needs an object.

From Middle English reysen, raisen, reisen, from Old Norse reisa (“to raise”), from Proto-Germanic raisijaną, raizijaną (“to raise”), causative form of Proto-Germanic rīsaną (“to rise”), from Proto-Indo-European h₁rey- (“to rise, arise”). According to Kroonen (2013), from Proto-Indo-European *h₃er- (“to stir, rise”). Cognate with Old English rāsian (“to explore, examine, research”), Old English rīsan (“to seize, carry off”), Old English rǣran (“to raise”). Doublet of rear.

Borrowed from Old Norse hreysi; the spelling came about under the influence of the folk etymology that derived it from the verb.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

VERB

raise(A2)

raising(B1)

NOUN

raiser(C1)