Meaning & use
raise
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Meanings
verbtransitive
To lift something up to a higher position.
Grammar: Always takes an object: raise your hand. Compare rise, which has no object.
Patterns
- raise something
- raise something above something
Please raise your hand if you know the answer.
The workers raised the flag at sunrise.
He raised the window to let in some air.
verbtransitive
To make an amount, level or rate larger.
Grammar: Takes an object such as prices, standards or awareness.
Patterns
- raise prices
- raise awareness of something
The shop raised its prices after the supplier's costs went up.
The campaign aims to raise awareness of the disease.
Heavy rain raised the river level by a meter.
verbtransitive
To look after a child or young animal until it is grown.
Grammar: Takes an object: raise a family. British English often uses bring up for people.
Patterns
- raise a child
- be raised in somewhere
She raised three children on her own.
He was raised on a farm in Iowa.
They raise sheep on the hillside.
verbtransitive
To gather money or support for a purpose.
Grammar: Takes an object such as money or funds.
Patterns
- raise money for something
- raise funds
The students raised money for the animal shelter by selling cakes.
The company is trying to raise funds for a new factory.
She raised thousands for charity by running the race.
verbtransitive
To bring up a subject, question or objection for discussion.
Grammar: Takes an object such as an issue, concern or question.
Patterns
- raise a concern
- raise a question about something
A parent raised a concern about the school's safety rules.
The report raises several important questions.
I'll raise the issue at tomorrow's meeting.
nouncountableAmerican
An increase in someone's pay.
Grammar: Chiefly American English; British English says pay rise.
Patterns
- get a raise
- ask for a raise
She asked her boss for a raise after the successful project.
He got a raise of two dollars an hour.
After a year, everyone on the team received a small raise.
Word forms
| third person singular | raises |
|---|---|
| past tense | raised |
| past participle | raised |
| -ing form | raising |
| plural | raises |
Common combinations
- raise your hand
- Raise your hand if you have a question.
- raise awareness
- The march aims to raise awareness of climate change.
- raise money
- They raised money for the local hospital.
- raise a concern
- A resident raised a concern about the noise.
- raise children
- They moved to the countryside to raise children.
- get a raise
- He finally got a raise after three years.
Synonyms and how they differ
- lift
- Lift usually suggests physically picking something up, while raise can also mean increasing a number or bringing up a topic.
- increase
- Increase is the general word for making something larger, but raise suggests someone deliberately setting a higher level.
- rear
- Rear is used for children and animals and sounds more formal, while raise is the usual everyday word.
- elevate
- Elevate is formal and often figurative, while raise is plain and everyday.
Opposites
Word family
- raising noun
- the act of lifting or bringing up, as in fund-raising
- raiser noun
- someone who raises something, as in a cattle raiser
- upraise verb
- to lift up, a rare literary word
- fundraiser noun
- an event or person that collects money for a cause
Commonly confused: raise or rise? raise or raze?
raise vs rise
Rise means to go up by itself and takes no object, as in the sun rises. Raise needs an object, as in raise the flag.
raise vs raze
Raze sounds identical but means to destroy a building completely.
Practice
The sun will ___ at 6:12 tomorrow, but the workers will ___ the flag at 8:00.
Choose one answer.
Rise has no object and describes the sun going up on its own, while raise needs an object, the flag. Swapping them is a classic error.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “raise”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.