lift
See also: Lift
EnglishEdit
PronunciationEdit
Etymology 1Edit
From Middle English liften, lyften, from Old Norse lypta (“to lift, air”, literally “to raise in the air”), from Proto-Germanic *luftijaną (“to raise in the air”), related to *luftuz (“roof, air”), perhaps from Proto-Indo-European *lewp- (“to peel, break off, damage”) or from a root meaning roof (see *luftuz). Cognate with Danish and Norwegian Bokmål løfte (“to lift”), Norwegian Nynorsk and Swedish lyfta (“to lift”), German lüften (“to air, lift”), Old English lyft (“air”). See above. 1851 for the noun sense "a mechanical device for vertical transport".
(To steal): For this sense Cleasby suggests perhaps a relation to the root of Gothic 𐌷𐌻𐌹𐍆𐍄𐌿𐍃 (hliftus) "thief", cognate with Latin cleptus and Greek κλέπτω (kléptō))[1]
VerbEdit
lift (third-person singular simple present lifts, present participle lifting, simple past lifted or (rare, regional, obsolete) lift, past participle lifted or (rare, regional, obsolete) lift or (obsolete) yleft)
- (transitive, intransitive) To raise or rise.
- The fog eventually lifted, leaving the streets clear.
- You never lift a finger to help me!
- c1490, Of Penance and Confession be master Jhon Yrlandː
- Liftand (lifting) thy hands and thy eyen to Heaven.
- 1900, Charles W. Chesnutt, The House Behind the Cedars, Chapter I,
- Their walk had continued not more than ten minutes when they crossed a creek by a wooden bridge and came to a row of mean houses standing flush with the street. At the door of one, an old black woman had stooped to lift a large basket, piled high with laundered clothes.
- 2015 February 7, Val Bourne, “The quiet man of the world of snowdrops”, in The Daily Telegraph (London), page G8:
- Once it [a snowdrop variety] became established, some bulbs were lifted and passed on to be chipped (i.e. cut into small pieces and grown on).
- (transitive, slang) To steal.
- (Can we date this quote?), Rudyard Kipling, The Ballad of East and West
- Kamal is out with twenty men to raise the Border side,
And he has lifted the Colonel's mare that is the Colonel's pride.
- Kamal is out with twenty men to raise the Border side,
- 1960, P[elham] G[renville] Wodehouse, chapter VI, in Jeeves in the Offing, London: Herbert Jenkins, OCLC 1227855:
- “Wilbert Cream is a ... what's the word?” I referred to the letter. “A kleptomaniac […] Does any thought occur to you?” “It most certainly does. I am thinking of your uncle's collection of old silver.” “Me, too.” “It presents a grave temptation to the unhappy young man.” “I don't know that I'd call him unhappy. He probably thoroughly enjoys lifting the stuff.”
- (Can we date this quote?), Rudyard Kipling, The Ballad of East and West
- (transitive, slang) To arrest (a person).
- 2000, Marie Smyth, Marie-Therese Fay, Personal Accounts From Northern Ireland's Troubles
- Maybe the police lifted him and he's in Castlereagh [Interrogation Centre] because he'd been lifted three or four times previously and took to Castlereagh. They used to come in and raid the house and take him away.
- 2000, Marie Smyth, Marie-Therese Fay, Personal Accounts From Northern Ireland's Troubles
- (transitive) To remove (a ban, restriction, etc.).
- (transitive) To alleviate, to lighten (pressure, tension, stress, etc.)
- 2011 September 24, David Ornstein, “Arsenal 3 - 0 Bolton”, in BBC Sport[1]:
- The Gunners boss has been heavily criticised for his side's poor start to the Premier League season but this result helps lift the pressure.
- (transitive) to cause to move upwards.
- 2011 October 2, Aled Williams, “Swansea 2 - 0 Stoke”, in BBC Sport Wales[2]:
- Graham secured victory with five minutes left, coolly lifting the ball over Asmir Begovic.
- (informal, intransitive) To lift weights; to weight-lift.
- She lifts twice a week at the gym.
- To try to raise something; to exert the strength for raising or bearing.
- (Can we date this quote by John Locke and provide title, author's full name, and other details?)
- strained by lifting at a weight too heavy
- (Can we date this quote by John Locke and provide title, author's full name, and other details?)
- To elevate or improve in rank, condition, etc.; often with up.
- (Can we date this quote by Addison and provide title, author's full name, and other details?)
- The Roman virtues lift up mortal man.
- Bible, 1 Timothy iii. 6
- being lifted up with pride
- (Can we date this quote by Addison and provide title, author's full name, and other details?)
- (obsolete) To bear; to support.
- (Can we find and add a quotation of Edmund Spenser to this entry?)
- To collect, as moneys due; to raise.
- (computing, programming) To transform (a function) into a corresponding function in a different context.
- (finance) To buy a security or other asset previously offered for sale.
Usage notesEdit
Lift also has an obsolete form liftand for the present participle. The strong forms were common until the 17th century in writing and still survive in speech in a few rural dialects.
HyponymsEdit
Derived termsEdit
TranslationsEdit
to raise or rise
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to steal
to remove a ban, restriction
to lift weights — See also translations at weight-lift
to collect, as moneys due
programming: to transform into a different context
ReferencesEdit
NounEdit
lift (countable and uncountable, plural lifts)
- An act of lifting or raising.
- The act of transporting someone in a vehicle; a ride; a trip.
- He gave me a lift to the bus station.
- (Britain, Australia, New Zealand) Mechanical device for vertically transporting goods or people between floors in a building; an elevator.
- Take the lift to the fourth floor.
- An upward force, such as the force that keeps aircraft aloft.
- (measurement) The difference in elevation between the upper pool and lower pool of a waterway, separated by lock.
- (historical slang) A thief.
- 1977, Gãmini Salgãdo, The Elizabethan Underworld, Folio Society 2006, page 32:
- The lift came into the shop dressed like a country gentleman, but was careful not to have a cloak about him, so that the tradesman could see he had no opportunity to conceal any goods about his person.
- 1977, Gãmini Salgãdo, The Elizabethan Underworld, Folio Society 2006, page 32:
- (dance) The lifting of a dance partner into the air.
- Permanent construction with a built-in platform that is lifted vertically.
- An improvement in mood.
- 2010, Anne Baker, With a Little Luck:
- Just to think he had both a mistress and a wife gave him a lift. He needed a lift, for although he'd had promotion, his wasn't an exciting job.
- November 17 2012, BBC Sport: Arsenal 5-2 Tottenham [3]
- The dismissal of a player who left Arsenal for Manchester City before joining Tottenham gave the home players and fans a noticeable lift.
- The amount or weight to be lifted.
- What's the maximum lift of this crane?
- The space or distance through which anything is lifted.
- (Can we find and add a quotation of Francis Bacon to this entry?)
- A rise; a degree of elevation.
- the lift of a lock in canals
- A liftgate.
- (nautical) A rope leading from the masthead to the extremity of a yard below, and used for raising or supporting the end of the yard.
- (engineering) One of the steps of a cone pulley.
- (shoemaking) A layer of leather in the heel of a shoe.
- (horology) That portion of the vibration of a balance during which the impulse is given.
- (Can we find and add a quotation of Saunier to this entry?)
Part or all of this entry has been imported from the 1913 edition of Webster’s Dictionary, which is now free of copyright and hence in the public domain. The imported definitions may be significantly out of date, and any more recent senses may be completely missing.
(See the entry for lift in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.)
SynonymsEdit
Derived termsEdit
TranslationsEdit
act of lifting or raising
the act of transporting someone in a vehicle
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mechanical device for vertically transporting goods or people
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upward force
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difference in elevation between the upper pool and lower pool of a waterway
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thief — see thief
dance: lifting of a dance partner into the air
permanent construction with a built-in platform that is lifted vertically
space or distance through which anything is lifted
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lift gate — see lift gate
engineering: one of the steps of a cone pulley
shoemaking: layer of leather in the heel of a shoe
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horology: portion of the vibration of a balance
- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout#Translations.
See alsoEdit
Etymology 2Edit
From Middle English lifte, luft, lefte (“air, sky, heaven”), from Old English lyft (“atmosphere, air”), from Proto-Germanic *luftuz (“roof, sky, air”), from Proto-Indo-European *lewp- (“to peel, break off, damage”). Cognate with Old High German luft (“air”) (German Luft), Dutch lucht (“air”), Old Norse lopt, loft (“upper room, sky, air”). More at loft.
NounEdit
lift (usually uncountable, plural lifts)
- (Britain dialectal, chiefly Scotland) Air.
- (Britain dialectal, chiefly Scotland) The sky; the heavens; firmament; atmosphere.
SynonymsEdit
- (gas or vapour breathed): air
- (firmament, ethereal region surrounding the earth): atmosphere
- (the heavens, sky): welkin
ReferencesEdit
- “lift” in Douglas Harper, Online Etymology Dictionary, 2001–2020.
AnagramsEdit
DanishEdit
NounEdit
lift n (singular definite liftet, plural indefinite lift)
InflectionEdit
Declension of lift
NounEdit
lift c (singular definite liften, plural indefinite lifte or lifter)
InflectionEdit
Declension of lift
DutchEdit
EtymologyEdit
PronunciationEdit
audio (file)
NounEdit
lift m (plural liften, diminutive liftje n)
VerbEdit
lift
- first-, second- and third-person singular present indicative of liften
- imperative of liften
HungarianEdit
EtymologyEdit
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
lift (plural liftek)
DeclensionEdit
| Inflection (stem in -e-, front unrounded harmony) | ||
|---|---|---|
| singular | plural | |
| nominative | lift | liftek |
| accusative | liftet | lifteket |
| dative | liftnek | lifteknek |
| instrumental | lifttel | liftekkel |
| causal-final | liftért | liftekért |
| translative | liftté | liftekké |
| terminative | liftig | liftekig |
| essive-formal | liftként | liftekként |
| essive-modal | — | — |
| inessive | liftben | liftekben |
| superessive | liften | lifteken |
| adessive | liftnél | lifteknél |
| illative | liftbe | liftekbe |
| sublative | liftre | liftekre |
| allative | lifthez | liftekhez |
| elative | liftből | liftekből |
| delative | liftről | liftekről |
| ablative | lifttől | liftektől |
| non-attributive possessive - singular |
lifté | lifteké |
| non-attributive possessive - plural |
liftéi | liftekéi |
| Possessive forms of lift | ||
|---|---|---|
| possessor | single possession | multiple possessions |
| 1st person sing. | liftem | liftjeim |
| 2nd person sing. | lifted | liftjeid |
| 3rd person sing. | liftje | liftjei |
| 1st person plural | liftünk | liftjeink |
| 2nd person plural | liftetek | liftjeitek |
| 3rd person plural | liftjük | liftjeik |
SynonymsEdit
- felvonó (dated)
- páternoszter (a slow, continuously moving lift or elevator)
Derived termsEdit
(Compound words):
- személyzeti lift (lift/elevator for staff)
- beteglift (lift/elevator for patients in hospitals)
- sílift
- teherlift
ItalianEdit
NounEdit
lift m (invariable)
Derived termsEdit
Serbo-CroatianEdit
EtymologyEdit
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
lȉft m (Cyrillic spelling ли̏фт)
DeclensionEdit
Declension of lift
SynonymsEdit
SlovakEdit
EtymologyEdit
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
lift m (genitive singular liftu, nominative plural lifty, genitive plural liftov, declension pattern of dub)
- (colloquial) an elevator, lift
DeclensionEdit
Declension of lift
SynonymsEdit
Derived termsEdit
Further readingEdit
- lift in Slovak dictionaries at korpus.sk
VolapükEdit
NounEdit
lift (nominative plural lifts)
- elevator
- altitude adjustor