View source for Raise - rise - rouse

These [[Verb (word class)|verb]]s, which are all connected, can be confused.  In formal English, be careful not to confuse the [[transitive]] forms '''raise''' and '''rouse''' with the [[intransitive]] form '''rise'''.  This is seen as a [[solecism]].
 
*One pair of meanings is to do with getting out of bed in the morning, or similarly leave a horizontal position for a vertical stance. 
**For a person who is getting up, the verb to use here is the [[intransitive]] verb 'to '''rise''''. 
**When I '''rise''', I get up.  (The same is true of the sun.)  The [[past tense]] (i.e. when you want to say â€œyesterdayâ€) of this verb is '''rose''' â€“ â€œwhen I was on holiday, I rose late.â€  The [[-ed participle|past participle]] (which follows â€˜haveâ€™, etc) is '''risen'''.  â€œThe sun has risen.â€
**If I want to wake someone else (either [[literally]] or [[figurative]]ly), I '''rouse''' them.  This is the [[tranistive]] verb. The past tense and past participle are both '''roused'''.
:These verbs have slightly old-fashioned equivalents, with the [[Middle English]] [[prefix]] a-: [[arise - arouse|arise and arouse]].  â€œI will '''arise''' and go now,â€ said the Irish poet W. B. Yeats (''The Lake Isle of Innisfree'').  Sometimes a person in extreme emotion is said to be '''aroused''' (the [[past participle]] â€“ which has the same form as the [[past tense]]).
 
*A second pair of meanings is to do with bringing objects or people to a vertical, or higher position.  
**When we want to say something like â€˜to make something riseâ€™, the proper verb is the [[transitive]] verb 'to '''raise''''. 
**When a baker makes a cake, a successful one will '''rise''' â€“ it will become taller in the oven.  Sometimes a baker will '''raise''' bread â€“ will <u>make</u> it grow taller.  The bread '''rises'''; the baker '''raises''' it.  (This is the difference between [[intransitive]] and [[transitive]] verbs.)  In the past tense, this becomes: the bread '''rose''', the baker '''raised''' it.   Similarly, â€œthe ancient people of Britain '''raised''' monuments like Stonehenge.â€  
::In academic circles, â€œMy student has '''raised''' an interesting questionâ€ sometimes means â€˜I donâ€™t know the answer to thisâ€™ - in colloquial English, It might be "My student '''brought up''' a question", and [[intransitive]]ly, "the question came up.")  
::When one talks about bringing up, or educating, children (or animals), the verb is to '''raise'''.  The past tense and past participle are '''raised'''.  â€œThe farmer '''raises''' sheepâ€; â€œShe '''raised''' her daughters to be strong.â€
[[Category:Spelling common errors]][[Category:Academic English]]