Rise

/ɹaɪz/ name, noun, verb, slang

name, noun, verb, slang ·Top 500 ·Elementary level

Meaning at a glance

  • Primary sense: The process of or an action or instance of moving upwards or becoming greater.
  • Grammar: rise is listed as name, noun, verb, slang.
  • Nearest alternatives: climb, get up, go up, raise.
  • Useful contrasts: countersunk, downward trend, earthbounding.
  • Usage evidence: Interest rates will rise due to monetary tightening.

How to use "rise"

  1. Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
  2. Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "rise" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
  3. Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.

Meaning check

  • Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
  • Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
  • Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
  • Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?

Source and review context

This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "rise" in a final draft.

If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.

Before you rely on this definition

Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "rise" as the right word for your sentence.

If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "rise" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.

Compare nearby meanings

  • Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
  • Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
  • Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
  • Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.

Definition decision workflow

1. Identify the role

Check whether "rise" is acting as name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.

2. Test the nearest option

Compare it with "climb" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.

3. Confirm with context

Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.

Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.

Final meaning check

Before publishing a sentence with "rise", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.

When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    The process of or an action or instance of moving upwards or becoming greater.

    "The rise of the tide."

  2. 2
    Alternative form of rice (“twig”). alt-of, alternative
  3. 3
    the act of changing location in an upward direction wordnet
  4. 4
    The process of or an action or instance of coming to prominence.

    "The rise of the working class."

  5. 5
    increase in price or value wordnet
Show 16 more definitions
  1. 6
    An increase in a quantity, price, etc. Australia, Canada, New-Zealand, South-Africa, UK, also
  2. 7
    the property possessed by a slope or surface that rises wordnet
  3. 8
    Ellipsis of pay rise (“an increase in wage or salary”). Australia, Canada, Ireland, UK, abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis, sometimes

    "The governor just gave me a rise of two pound six."

  4. 9
    the amount a salary is increased wordnet
  5. 10
    The amount of material extending from waist to crotch in a pair of trousers or shorts.

    "The rise of his pants was so low that his tailbone was exposed."

  6. 11
    an increase in cost wordnet
  7. 12
    The front of a diaper.
  8. 13
    a growth in strength or number or importance wordnet
  9. 14
    A small hill; used chiefly in place names.
  10. 15
    (theology) the origination of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost wordnet
  11. 16
    An area of terrain that tends upward away from the viewer, such that it conceals the region behind it; a slope.

    "the land rolls gently, so that, upon cresting a low rise or passing a copse of wind turbines, you suddenly spot a lot full of lorries or a complex of gigantic sheds."

  12. 17
    a wave that lifts the surface of the water or ground wordnet
  13. 18
    A very noticeable visible or audible reaction of a person or group. informal

    "Making fun of their football team is one sure way to get a rise from a crowd."

  14. 19
    a movement upward; rise above the ground wordnet
  15. 20
    The height of an arch or a step.

    "As the rise, i.e. height, of the arch decreases, the outward thrust increases."

  16. 21
    an upward slope or grade (as in a road) wordnet
Verb
  1. 1
    To move, or appear to move, physically upwards relative to the ground.; To move upwards. intransitive

    "We watched the balloon rise."

  2. 2
    get up and out of bed wordnet
  3. 3
    To move, or appear to move, physically upwards relative to the ground.; To grow upward; to attain a certain height. intransitive

    "This elm tree rises to a height of seventy feet."

  4. 4
    return from the dead wordnet
  5. 5
    To move, or appear to move, physically upwards relative to the ground.; To slope upward. intransitive

    "The path rises as you approach the foot of the hill."

Show 36 more definitions
  1. 6
    increase in value or to a higher point wordnet
  2. 7
    To move, or appear to move, physically upwards relative to the ground.; To appear to move upwards from behind the horizon of a planet as a result of the planet's rotation. intransitive

    "And still the hours passed, and at last I knew by the glimmer of light in the tomb above that the sun had risen again, and a maddening thirst had hold of me. And then I thought of all the barrels piled up in the vault and of the liquor that they held; and stuck not because 'twas spirit, for I would scarce have paused to sate that thirst even with molten lead."

  3. 8
    rise in rank or status wordnet
  4. 9
    To move, or appear to move, physically upwards relative to the ground.; To become erect; to assume an upright position. intransitive

    "to rise from a chair or from a fall"

  5. 10
    become more extreme wordnet
  6. 11
    To move, or appear to move, physically upwards relative to the ground.; To leave one's bed; to get up. intransitive

    "Yellow is the colour of my true love's hair, In the morning, when we rise"

  7. 12
    go up or advance wordnet
  8. 13
    To move, or appear to move, physically upwards relative to the ground.; To be resurrected. figuratively, intransitive

    "he rose from the grave;   he is risen!"

  9. 14
    exert oneself to meet a challenge wordnet
  10. 15
    To move, or appear to move, physically upwards relative to the ground.; To terminate an official sitting; to adjourn. figuratively, intransitive

    "The committee rose after agreeing to the report."

  11. 16
    become heartened or elated wordnet
  12. 17
    To increase in value or standing.; To attain a higher status. intransitive

    "Some rise by sin, and some by virtue fall."

  13. 18
    move upward wordnet
  14. 19
    To increase in value or standing.; Of a quantity, price, etc., to increase. intransitive

    "Investors face a quandary. Cash offers a return of virtually zero in many developed countries; government-bond yields may have risen in recent weeks but they are still unattractive. Equities have suffered two big bear markets since 2000 and are wobbling again. It is hardly surprising that pension funds, insurers and endowments are searching for new sources of return."

  15. 20
    move to a better position in life or to a better job wordnet
  16. 21
    To increase in value or standing.; To become more and more dignified or forcible; to increase in interest or power; said of style, thought, or discourse. intransitive

    "to rise in force of expression; to rise in eloquence; a story rises in interest."

  17. 22
    come up, of celestial bodies wordnet
  18. 23
    To increase in value or standing.; To ascend on a musical scale; to take a higher pitch. intransitive

    "to rise a tone or semitone"

  19. 24
    increase in volume wordnet
  20. 25
    To begin, to develop; to be initiated.; To become active, effective or operational, especially in response to an external or internal stimulus. intransitive

    "to rise to the occasion"

  21. 26
    rise to one's feet wordnet
  22. 27
    To begin, to develop; to be initiated.; To develop, to come about or intensify. intransitive

    "As hunger and despondency became more intense, a determination rose within me to find a way of getting off the desert island."

  23. 28
    come to the surface wordnet
  24. 29
    To begin, to develop; to be initiated.; To swell or puff up in the process of fermentation; to become light. intransitive

    "Has that dough risen yet?"

  25. 30
    take part in a rebellion; renounce a former allegiance wordnet
  26. 31
    To begin, to develop; to be initiated.; To have its source (in a particular place). intransitive

    "The majestic Marannon, or Amazon River, rises out of the Lake Launcocha, situated in the province of Tarma, in 10° 14ʹ south latitude, and ten leagues to the north of Pasco."

  27. 32
    come into existence; take on form or shape wordnet
  28. 33
    To begin, to develop; to be initiated.; To become perceptible to the senses (other than sight). intransitive

    "a noise rose on the air; odour rises from the flower"

  29. 34
    rise up wordnet
  30. 35
    To begin, to develop; to be initiated.; To become agitated, opposed, or hostile; to go to war; to take up arms; to rebel. intransitive

    "At our heels all hell should rise With blackest insurrection."

  31. 36
    To begin, to develop; to be initiated.; To come to mind; to be suggested; to occur. intransitive

    "A thought rose in me, which I believe very often perplexes […]men of contemplative natures."

  32. 37
    To go up; to ascend; to climb. transitive

    "to rise a hill"

  33. 38
    To cause to go up or ascend. transitive

    "to rise a fish, or cause it to come to the surface of the water"

  34. 39
    To retire; to give up a siege. obsolete

    "He,[…] rising with small honour from Gunza,[…]was gone."

  35. 40
    To come; to offer itself.

    "There chaunced to the Princes hand to rize, / An auncient booke, […]"

  36. 41
    To be lifted, or capable of being lifted, from the imposing stone without dropping any of the type; said of a form. dated

    "One side of the form is now to be lifted from the stone just enough to allow the compositor to see whether it will rise or not but not so high as to let any loose letters drop out."

Proper Noun
  1. 1
    A surname.

Synonyms

All synonyms
climbget upgo upraiseabrupt spikeabruptness

Antonyms

countersunkdownward trendearthboundinggentle decline

Example

"Interest rates will rise due to monetary tightening."

Common questions

What does "rise" mean?

The process of or an action or instance of moving upwards or becoming greater.

What is a synonym for "rise"?

Common synonyms include: climb, get up, go up, raise, abrupt spike, abruptness.

How do you use "rise" in a sentence?

Interest rates will rise due to monetary tightening.

How do you pronounce "rise"?

Pronounced /ɹaɪz/.

Etymology

Etymology 1

From Middle English risen, from Old English rīsan, from Proto-West Germanic *rīsan, from Proto-Germanic *rīsaną (“to rise”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₁rey- (“to arise, rise”). According to Kroonen (2013), from Proto-Indo-European *h₃er- (“to rise, spring”). See also raise. Cognates Cognate with Dutch rijzen (“to rise”), German reisen (“to fall”), Limburgish rieze (“to rise”), Faroese and Icelandic rísa (“to rise”), Norwegian Nynorsk risa, rise (“to rise”), Gothic *𐍂𐌴𐌹𐍃𐌰𐌽 (*reisan, “to rise”) (whence 𐌿𐍂𐍂𐌴𐌹𐍃𐌰𐌽 (urreisan, “to arise”)). Non-Germanic cognates include Cornish ardh (“height”), Irish arad, ard, árd (“high, tall”), Manx ard (“high, tall”), Scottish Gaelic àrd (“high”), Welsh ardd (“hill, upland”), Latin orior (“to rise”), Ancient Greek ἔρις (éris, “quarell, strife; contention, rivalry”) (whence Greek έριδα (érida, “feud”)), Albanian rashë (“to have fallen; to have flopped”), Bulgarian ръст (rǎst, “size; stature; growth”), Czech růst (“growth”), Macedonian раст (rast, “growth, height”), Polish rost, wzrost (“growth”), Russian рост (rost, “growth”), Serbo-Croatian ра̑ст, rȃst (“growth”), Slovene rȃst (“growth”), Old Armenian յառնեմ (yaṙnem, “to arise, rise”) (whence Armenian հառնել (haṙnel, “to rise up”)), Persian رمبیدن (rombidan, “to collapse”), Tocharian A ar- (“to evoke”), Tocharian B er- (“to evoke”), Hittite 𒀀𒊏𒀀𒄑𒍣 (arāwanzi, “to rise”), Sanskrit ऋ (ṛ, “to rise”).

Etymology 2

From Middle English ris, rys, from Old English hrīs, from Proto-Germanic *hrīsą (“twig; shoot”). More at rice.

Etymology 3

Variant spelling of Rice.

More for "rise"

Synonyms

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