rise.
To move, or appear to move, physically upwards relative to the ground.
Meaning & usage
To move, or appear to move, physically upwards relative to the ground. To move upwards.
We watched the balloon rise.
Disturbed by my footsteps, the birds rose above the treetops.
To move, or appear to move, physically upwards relative to the ground. To grow upward; to attain a certain height.
This elm tree rises to a height of seventy feet.
To move, or appear to move, physically upwards relative to the ground. To slope upward.
The path rises as you approach the foot of the hill.
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.
The sun was rising in the East.
To move, or appear to move, physically upwards relative to the ground. To become erect; to assume an upright position.
to rise from a chair or from a fall
To move, or appear to move, physically upwards relative to the ground. To leave one's bed; to get up.
To move, or appear to move, physically upwards relative to the ground. To be resurrected.
he rose from the grave; he is risen!
To move, or appear to move, physically upwards relative to the ground. To terminate an official sitting; to adjourn.
The committee rose after agreeing to the report.
To increase in value or standing. To attain a higher status.
To increase in value or standing. Of a quantity, price, etc., to increase.
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.
to rise in force of expression; to rise in eloquence; a story rises in interest.
To increase in value or standing. To ascend on a musical scale; to take a higher pitch.
to rise a tone or semitone
To begin, to develop; to be initiated. To become active, effective or operational, especially in response to an external or internal stimulus.
to rise to the occasion
Thus far, my intellect has been able to rise sufficiently to meet every academic challenge that I have encountered.
To begin, to develop; to be initiated. To develop, to come about or intensify.
As hunger and despondency became more intense, a determination rose within me to find a way of getting off the desert island.
To begin, to develop; to be initiated. To swell or puff up in the process of fermentation; to become light.
Has that dough risen yet?
To begin, to develop; to be initiated. To have its source (in a particular place).
To begin, to develop; to be initiated. To become perceptible to the senses (other than sight).
a noise rose on the air; odour rises from the flower
To begin, to develop; to be initiated. To become agitated, opposed, or hostile; to go to war; to take up arms; to rebel.
To begin, to develop; to be initiated. To come to mind; to be suggested; to occur.
To go up; to ascend; to climb.
to rise a hill
To cause to go up or ascend.
to rise a fish, or cause it to come to the surface of the water
to rise a ship, or bring it above the horizon by approaching it
To retire; to give up a siege.
To come; to offer itself.
To be lifted, or capable of being lifted, from the imposing stone without dropping any of the type; said of a form.
Where this word comes from
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 (răst, “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”).
The process of or an action or instance of moving upwards or becoming greater.
The rise of the tide.
There was a rise of nearly two degrees since yesterday.
The process of or an action or instance of coming to prominence.
The rise of the working class.
The rise of the printing press.
An increase in a quantity, price, etc.
Ellipsis of pay rise (“an increase in wage or salary”).
The governor just gave me a rise of two pound six.
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.
The front of a diaper.
A small hill; used chiefly in place names.
An area of terrain that tends upward away from the viewer, such that it conceals the region behind it; a slope.
A very noticeable visible or audible reaction of a person or group.
Making fun of their football team is one sure way to get a rise from a crowd.
She really got a rise from the audience when she donned a wig and talked like the president.
The height of an arch or a step.
As the rise, i.e. height, of the arch decreases, the outward thrust increases.
Each step had a rise of 170 mm and a going of 250 mm.
Where this word comes from
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 (răst, “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”).
Alternative form of rice (“twig”).
Where this word comes from
From Middle English ris, rys, from Old English hrīs, from Proto-Germanic *hrīsą (“twig; shoot”). More at rice.
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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.
Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.