The Difference between Rise and Raise

The difference between the words rise and raise can be confusing to many individuals, especially those who are trying to learn the English language. This is because both words have basically the same meaning—they refer to something that will go up.

The literal definition for raise is to “cause something to be lifted up or become higher” or to “cause something to become bigger or stronger; increase.”[i] The literal definition for rise is to “move up from a lower to a higher position, or to become higher” or “to become more or greater in amount, size, or degree; increase.”[ii] As you can see, their meaning is nearly identical, which is the source of confusion between the two.

There is one major difference between the two: raise is considered a transitive verb , meaning it must have a direct object, while rise is intransitive, with no direct object. Put simple, the sentence structures would look like this:[iii]

• Something raises
• Something

Examples for using the term raise correctly include the following:

I had to raise the blinds in order to see outside.

The company raises our wages most years.

The grocery store had to raise their prices due to the citrus shortage.

Examples for using rise correctly are as follows:

As air gets warmer, it rises.

The prices for homes in this area are rising.

I like to rise each morning at 7 AM.

Examples using both raise and rise are listed below:

We raise the flag when the sun rises, and we lower it when the sun goes down.[iv]

When the national anthem is played, we rise from our chairs and raise our hands to our hearts.

Another difference between the two words is how they are each conjugated. The simple past and past participle of raise (a regular verb) is raised, whereas the simple past and past participle of rise (an irregular verb) is rose.[v]

Here are some examples for using the past conjugation of raise:

I raised my hand while I was being sworn in.

He raised the ladder in order to reach the tree branches.

James raised his eyebrows when Mary told him the news.

Examples for using the past conjugations of rise include the following:

The prices rose again.

As his career progressed, he rose through the ranks to become a manager.

I rose from my chair when my legs started to ache from sitting.

The present participle for both words follow a similar structure. For raise, this would be raising and for rise, it would be rising.

Examples for using the present participle of raised would be:

Staff members raised the flag to celebrate the day.

Examples for using the present participle of rise would be:

The water level keeps rising with additional rain.

The sun is rising.

Prices continue rising.

To further confuse the correct usage of these words, they both have alternate meanings and can be used to indicate other things. For instance, the word raise could also mean “to take care of children or young animals until completely grown.”

Examples for using raise in this capacity include the following:

She raised six sons.

John raises chickens for profit.

I would like to raise my children to be successful.

Additional meanings for the word rise could be to “begin to oppose or fight (especially. a bad government or ruler) as a group” or, when in the form of a noun, “a small hill or slope.”[vi]

Examples of both of these meanings include the following:

The people rise up against the tyranny of their leaders.

The cabin was built on a rise.

As you can see, there are many similarities between the words raise and rise, but their diffences can be summed up in one relatively easy concept. Essentially, using the term raise means that something is being raised by something else. When using the term rise, it means that something is rising.

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