# elevate

Pronunciation: say "EL-uh-vayt" /ˈɛləveɪt/

## Verb

1. To lift something, or move it upward, so that it is held or positioned higher.
   - Simple: To lift something up to a higher place.
   - _Doctors often advise patients to elevate an injured limb above heart level._
   - _The platform can elevate the camera for a wider view._
2. To make someone or something more worthy or of greater value.
   - Simple: To make something or someone better or more valued.
   - _A thoughtful design can elevate an everyday object into a work of art._
   - _The chef's attention to detail elevates simple ingredients to fine dining._
3. To raise the level of something, making it stronger or greater.
   - Simple: To make a feeling or level stronger or greater.
   - _Stress hormones can elevate blood pressure over time._
   - _The director used silence to elevate the suspense in the final scene._
4. To give someone a more senior rank or position than they held before.
   - Simple: To move someone up to a higher job or rank.
   - _The board voted to elevate the deputy to chief executive._
   - _Military leaders elevated the colonel to general after the campaign._
5. To grant honor or noble rank to someone.
   - Simple: To give someone a noble title or high honor.
   - _The monarch elevated the general to a duke after the victory._
   - _The church moved to elevate the bishop to cardinal._
6. To lead someone's mind or thoughts toward things of greater worth.
   - Simple: To turn your thoughts toward better or higher things.
   - _Great art can elevate the mind beyond everyday concerns._
   - _Meditation elevates the thoughts toward calmer, nobler aims._
7. To temporarily grant a program additional security privileges so it can perform a restricted action.
   - Simple: To give a program extra permissions so it can do protected actions on a computer.
   - _Administrators can elevate a process to access kernel-level resources._
   - _The installer asked the operating system to elevate its privileges before writing to the directory._

## Verb

8. To make a sound, most often one's own voice, louder. *(dated)*
   - Simple: To make a sound or your voice louder.
   - _The preacher elevated his voice to reach the back of the hall._
   - _Actors learn to elevate their voices without straining._
9. To make someone mildly intoxicated, or pleasantly tipsy. *(dated)*
   - Simple: To make someone slightly drunk in a cheerful way.
   - _Two glasses of sherry were enough to elevate the old colonel into song._
   - _The festive cider had elevated half the guests by midnight._
10. To lift someone's spirits and make a person feel cheerful and hopeful. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: To make someone feel happier and more hopeful.
   - _Sweet music did much to elevate the grieving widow in her sorrow._
   - _The chaplain's gentle words elevated the weary soldiers before the march._
11. To attempt to make something appear less important or noteworthy than it is. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: To try to make something seem less important than it is.

## Adjective

Pronunciation: say "EL-uh-vit" /ˈɛləvət/

12. Raised aloft; lifted to a higher position. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: Raised up high and lifted into the air.

## Origin

**Meanings 1–11** — This verb comes from Middle English elevaten ("to raise up, elate, inflate"), which goes back to Latin ēlevātus, from ēlevō ("to raise, lift up"). That word is built from ē- ("out") plus levō ("to make light, to lift"), from levis ("light"); compare levity and lever.
**Meaning 12** — This form comes from Middle English elevat(e) ("high in position, rank, or altitude," also used as the past participle of elevaten), formed with the adjective suffix -ate; see Etymology 1 for more. It is cognate with French élevé.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/elevate (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).