U

raise

verb (used with object), raised, rais·ing.

to move to a higher position; lift up; elevate: to raise one’s hand; sleepy birds raising their heads and looking about.
to set upright: When the projection screen toppled, he quickly raised it again.
to cause to rise or stand up; rouse: The sound of the bugle raised him from his bed.
to build; erect: to raise a monument.
to set up the framework of: to raise a house.
to set in motion; activate: to raise a storm of protest.
to grow or breed, care for, or promote the growth of: to raise corn; to raise prizewinning terriers.
to serve in the capacity of parent to; rear: to raise children.
to give rise to; bring up or about: His comments raised a ripple of applause.
to put forward; present for public consideration: He raised the issue of his opponent’s eligibility.
Law. to make (an issue at law).
to restore to life: to raise the dead.
to stir up: to raise a rebellion with stirring speeches.
to give vigor to; animate: The news raised his spirits.
to advance in rank or position: to raise someone to the peerage.
to assemble or collect: to raise an army; to raise money for a charity.
to increase the height or vertical measurement of: The blocks raise the table three inches.
to increase in degree, intensity, pitch, or force: to raise the volume of a radio.
to utter (a cry, shout, etc.) in a loud voice.
to cause (the voice) to be heard: to raise one’s voice in opposition.
to cause (dough or bread) to rise by expansion and become light, as by the use of yeast.
to increase in amount: to raise rents; to raise salaries.
to increase (the value or price) of a commodity, stock, bond, etc.
Poker.
1. to increase (another player’s bet).
2. to bet at a higher level than (a preceding bettor).
Bridge. to increase (the bid for a contract) by repeating one’s partner’s bid at a higher level.
Phonetics. to alter the articulation of (a vowel) by bringing the tongue closer to the palate: The vowel in “pen” is raised to (i) in some dialects.
to increase the amount specified in (a check, money order, or the like) by fraudulent alteration.
Military. to end (a siege) by withdrawing the besieging forces or by compelling the besieging forces to withdraw.
Nautical.
1. to cause (something) to rise above the visible horizon by approaching it.
2. to come in sight of (land, a whale, etc.).
to establish communication with by radio: The radioman was able to raise shore headquarters after three tries.
Mining. to excavate (an opening) upward from a level below.

verb (used without object), raised, rais·ing.

to be able to be lifted or pulled up: The window raises easily.
(in cards, poker, etc.) to increase a previous bet or bid: My cards weren’t good enough to let me raise.

noun

an increase in amount, as of wages: a raise in pay.
the amount of such an increase: His raise was five dollars.
a raising, lifting, etc.: a raise in spirits.
a raised or ascending place; rise.
Mining. a shaft excavated upward from below.Compare winze¹.

Idioms

raise Cain. Cain¹(def 3).

verb (mainly tr)

to move, cause to move, or elevate to a higher position or level; lift
to set or place in an upright position
to construct, build, or erectto raise a barn
to increase in amount, size, value, etcto raise prices
to increase in degree, strength, intensity, etcto raise one’s voice
to advance in rank or status; promote
to arouse or awaken from or as if from sleep or death
to stir up or incite; activateto raise a mutiny
raise Cain, raise the devil, raise hell or raise the roof
1. to create a boisterous disturbance
2. to react or protest heatedly
to give rise to; cause or provoketo raise a smile
to put forward for considerationto raise a question
to cause to assemble or gather together; collectto raise an army
to grow or cause to growto raise a crop
to bring up; rearto raise a family
to cause to be heard or known; utter or expressto raise a shout; to raise a protest
to bring to an end; removeto raise a siege; raise a ban
to cause (dough, bread, etc) to rise, as by the addition of yeast
poker to bet more than (the previous player)
bridge to bid (one’s partner’s suit) at a higher level
nautical to cause (something) to seem to rise above the horizon by approachingwe raised land after 20 days
to establish radio communications withwe managed to raise Moscow last night
to obtain (money, funds, capital, etc)
to bring (a surface, a design, etc) into relief; cause to project
to cause (a blister, welt, etc) to form on the skin, to expel (phlegm) by coughing
phonetics to modify the articulation of (a vowel) by bringing the tongue closer to the roof of the mouth
maths to multiply (a number) by itself a specified number of times8 is 2 raised to the power 3
1. to institute (a suit or action at law)
2. to draw up (a summons)
mainly US and Canadian to increase the amount payable on (a cheque, money order, etc) fraudulently
curling to push (a stone) towards the tee with another stone
raise an eyebrow
1. Also: raise one’s eyebrowsto look quizzical or surprised
2. to give rise to doubt or disapproval
raise one’s glass to to drink the health of; drink a toast to
raise one’s hat old-fashioned to take one’s hat briefly off one’s head as a greeting or mark of respect

noun

the act or an instance of raising
mainly US and Canadian an increase, esp in salary, wages, etc; rise

c.1200, “cause a rising of; lift upright, set upright; build, construct,” from a Scandinavian source, e.g. Old Norse reisa “to raise,” from Proto-Germanic *raizjan (cf. Gothic ur-raisjan, Old English ræran “to rear;” see rear (v.)), causative of root *ris- “to rise” (see rise (v.)). At first sharing many senses with native rear (v.).

Meaning “make higher” is from c.1300 in the physical sense, as is that of “restore to life.” Of the voice, from late 14c. Meaning “increase the amount of” is from c.1500; from 1530s of prices, etc. Meaning “to bring up” (a question, etc.) is from 1640s. Card-playing sense is from 1821. Meaning “promote the growth of” (plants, etc.) is from 1660s; sense of “foster, rear, bring up” (of children) is from 1744. Meaning “to elevate” (the consciousness) is from 1970. Related: Raised; raising.

Pickering (1816) has a long passage on the use of raise and grow in reference to crops. He writes that in the U.S. raise is used of persons, in the sense “brought up,” but it is “never thus used in the Northern States. Bartlett [1848] adds that it “is applied in the Southern States to the breeding of negroes. It is sometimes heard at the North among the illiterate; as ‘I was raised in Connecticut,’ meaning brought up there.”

“act of raising or lifting,” 1530s, from raise (v.). Meaning “an increase in amount or value” is from 1728. Meaning “increase in salary or wages” is from 1898, chiefly American English (British preferring rise). Earliest attested use (c.1500) is in obsolete sense of “a levy.”

In addition to the idioms beginning with raise

raise a hand against
raise an objection
raise a stink
raise Cain
raise eyebrows
raise havoc
raise hell
raise one’s hackles
raise one’s sights
raise one’s voice
raise the ante
raise the curtain
raise the devil
raise the roof

also see:

cause raised eyebrows
curtain raiser
make (raise) a stink
play (raise) havoc