2 PHRASE If you say that you are saving something, especially money, for a rainy day , you mean that you are saving it until a time in the future when you might need it. □ I'll put the rest in the bank for a rainy day.
raise ◆◆◆ /re I z/ (raises , raising , raised )
1 VERB If you raise something, you move it so that it is in a higher position. □ [V n] He raised his hand to wave. □ [V n prep/adv] Milton raised the glass to his lips. □ [V -ed] …a small raised platform.
2 VERB If you raise a flag, you display it by moving it up a pole or into a high place where it can be seen. □ [V n] They had raised the white flag in surrender.
3 VERB If you raise yourself , you lift your body so that you are standing up straight, or so that you are no longer lying flat. □ [V pron-refl] He raised himself into a sitting position.
4 VERB If you raise the rate or level of something, you increase it. □ [V n] The Republic of Ireland is expected to raise interest rates. □ [V -ed] …a raised body temperature.
5 VERB To raise the standard of something means to improve it. □ [V n] …a new drive to raise standards of literacy in Britain's schools.
6 VERB If you raise your voice , you speak more loudly, usually because you are angry. □ [V n] Don't you raise your voice to me, Henry Rollins!
7 N‑COUNT A raise is an increase in your wages or salary. [AM ] □ Within two months Kelly got a raise. in BRIT, use rise 8 VERB If you raise money for a charity or an institution, you ask people for money which you collect on its behalf. □ [V n + for ] …events held to raise money for Help the Aged.
9 VERB If a person or company raises money that they need, they manage to get it, for example by selling their property or by borrowing. □ [V n] They raised the money to buy the house and two hundred acres of grounds.
10 VERB If an event raises a particular emotion or question, it makes people feel the emotion or consider the question. □ [V n] The agreement has raised hopes that the war may end soon. □ [V n] The accident again raises questions about the safety of the plant.
11 VERB If you raise a subject, an objection, or a question, you mention it or bring it to someone's attention. □ [V n] He had been consulted and had raised no objections.
12 VERB Someone who raises a child looks after it until it is grown up. □ [V n] My mother was an amazing woman. She raised four of us kids virtually singlehandedly.
13 VERB If someone raises a particular type of animal or crop, they breed that type of animal or grow that type of crop. □ [V n] He raises 2,000 acres of wheat and hay.
14 to raise the alarm → see alarm
15 to raise your eyebrows → see eyebrow
16 to raise a finger → see finger
17 to raise hell → see hell
18 to raise a laugh → see laugh
19 to raise the roof → see roof SYNONYMS raise VERB
1
lift: She lifted the last of her drink to her lips.
elevate: Jack elevated the gun at the sky.
4
increase: The company has increased the price of its cars.
elevate: Emotional stress can elevate blood pressure.
inflate: The promotion of a big release can inflate a film's final cost.
augment: While searching for a way to augment the family income, she began making dolls.
rai|sin /re I z ə n/ (raisins ) N‑COUNT Raisins are dried grapes.
rai|son d'etre /re I zɒn de trə/ also raison d'être N‑SING [usu with poss] A person's or organization's raison d'etre is the most important reason for them existing in the way that they do. □ …a debate about the raison d'etre of the armed forces.
Raj /rɑʒ / N‑SING The British Raj was the period of British rule in India which ended in 1947. □ …Indian living conditions under the Raj.
rake /re I k/ (rakes , raking , raked )
1 N‑COUNT A rake is a garden tool consisting of a row of metal or wooden teeth attached to a long handle. You can use a rake to make the earth smooth and level before you put plants in, or to gather leaves together.
2 VERB If you rake a surface, you move a rake across it in order to make it smooth and level. □ [V n] Rake the soil, press the seed into it, then cover it lightly.
3 VERB If you rake leaves or ashes, you move them somewhere using a rake or a similar tool. □ [V n adv/prep] I watched the men rake leaves into heaps.
▸ rake in PHRASAL VERB If you say that someone is raking in money, you mean that they are making a lot of money very easily, more easily than you think they should. [INFORMAL ] □ [V P n] The privatisation allowed companies to rake in huge profits. [Also V n P ]
▸ rake over PHRASAL VERB If you say that someone is raking over something that has been said, done, or written in the past, you mean that they are examining and discussing it in detail, in a way that you do not think is very pleasant. □ [V P n] Nobody wanted to rake over his past history.
▸ rake up PHRASAL VERB If someone is raking up something unpleasant or embarrassing that happened in the past, they are talking about it when you would prefer them not to mention it. □ [V P n] Raking up the past won't help anyone. [Also V n P ]