uplift
gb/ˈʌplɪft/ us/ˈʌplɪft/
B2
English
Senses
0 senses
Verb
B2
action
1
make someone feel happier
to make someone feel better and more positive
Usage pattern:
uplift [someone] / uplift [someone]'s spirits
Common mistake:
Learners often confuse uplift (make happier) with lift (move upward physically).
Synonyms
cheer up (More informal and very common in speech.)
|
encourage (Focuses on giving support or confidence, not only happiness.)
|
inspire (Stronger; suggests motivating someone to act or think differently.)
Antonyms
discourage (Makes someone lose confidence or hope.)
|
depress (Makes someone feel sad or low.)
Collocations
uplift someone
|uplift your spirits
|uplift the mood
|uplift morale
|uplift the team
|uplift others
|uplift people
|emotionally uplifting
|find something uplifting
|an uplifting message
Themes
emotions
|wellbeing
|relationships
Examples
- Her kind words really uplifted me after a difficult day.
- The music was gentle and uplifting.
- It helps to read something uplifting when you feel stressed.
Learner examples
- Good news can uplift you.
- This song uplifts my mood.
Verb
formal
B2
action
2
lift something to a higher position
to lift something up
Usage pattern:
uplift [something]
Common mistake:
In everyday conversation, lift is more common than uplift for physical movement.
Synonyms
lift (Most common verb for raising something.)
|
raise (Often implies moving upward to a higher level or standard.)
Antonyms
lower (Move something down to a lower position.)
|
drop (Let something fall or release it suddenly.)
Collocations
uplift a box
|uplift the lid
|uplift the handle
|uplift the edge
|uplift the corner
|uplift a load
Themes
physical_action
|daily_life
Examples
- Two workers used a crane to uplift the heavy stone.
- He tried to uplift the lid, but it was stuck.
- The machine uplifts the pallets onto the platform.
Learner examples
- Please uplift the box carefully.
Verb
formal
C1
action
3
improve lives or standards
to help people or society become better
Usage pattern:
uplift [a community/group] / uplift [lives/standards]
Common mistake:
Do not use uplift to mean 'upgrade' a device or 'upload' a file.
Synonyms
improve (Broader and more neutral; less about moral or social elevation.)
|
empower (Emphasizes giving people control, rights, or confidence.)
|
elevate (More formal; focuses on raising status or standards.)
Antonyms
degrade (Lower someone’s status or quality of life.)
|
oppress (Keep people down through unfair control.)
Collocations
uplift communities
|uplift disadvantaged groups
|uplift lives
|uplift families
|uplift standards
|uplift society
|uplift through education
|uplift programs
Themes
society
|education
|politics
|culture
Examples
- The scholarship program aims to uplift students from low-income families.
- Local leaders launched a plan to uplift the neighborhood through new jobs and training.
- The organization says its mission is to uplift communities through education.
Learner examples
- The program helps uplift poor families.
Noun
business
B2
quantity
4
an increase in results
an increase, especially in sales or results
Usage pattern:
an uplift in [sales/revenue/traffic] / a [number]% uplift
Common mistake:
In this sense, uplift is a countable noun (an uplift) or used with a percentage; it is not the same as 'lift' in everyday speech.
Synonyms
increase (Most general term; less specialized.)
|
boost (More informal; suggests a helpful push upward.)
|
rise (Often used for prices or numbers moving upward over time.)
Antonyms
decline (A decrease over time.)
|
drop (A decrease, often sudden.)
Collocations
a sales uplift
|a revenue uplift
|a traffic uplift
|a conversion uplift
|a significant uplift
|a small uplift
|a percentage uplift
|a 10% uplift
|deliver uplift
|see an uplift
Themes
business
|marketing
|data
Examples
- The campaign produced a 7% uplift in online sales.
- We saw a small uplift in sign-ups after the redesign.
- The report highlights an uplift in customer satisfaction scores.
Learner examples
- We got a 5% uplift in sales.
Noun
C1
state
5
a feeling of optimism
a happy, hopeful feeling
Usage pattern:
a sense/feeling of uplift
Common mistake:
This noun is less common than 'a lift' or 'a boost' in casual speech.
Synonyms
boost (More informal; often used for mood or energy.)
|
lift (Common in the phrase 'a lift' meaning encouragement.)
|
encouragement (Focuses on supportive words or actions.)
Antonyms
gloom (A state of sadness or hopelessness.)
|
despair (A stronger sense of hopelessness.)
Collocations
a sense of uplift
|a feeling of uplift
|emotional uplift
|provide uplift
|need some uplift
|offer uplift
Themes
emotions
|wellbeing
Examples
- The visit gave her a much-needed sense of uplift.
- He looks for small moments of uplift during stressful weeks.
- A short walk outside can bring a surprising uplift.
Learner examples
- This talk gave me uplift.
Noun
technical
C2
process
6
upward movement of land
a slow rise of the ground because of earth forces
Usage pattern:
tectonic uplift / regional uplift
Common mistake:
This technical meaning is unrelated to emotional uplift.
Synonyms
upheaval (Broader; can imply sudden or violent movement.)
|
rise (More general; does not specifically signal geological mechanisms.)
Antonyms
subsidence (The sinking or settling of the ground.)
Collocations
tectonic uplift
|regional uplift
|mountain uplift
|rates of uplift
|uplift and erosion
|evidence of uplift
Themes
geology
|science
Examples
- Geologists measured uplift along the fault line after the earthquake.
- Over millions of years, uplift and erosion shaped the landscape.
- The study estimates rapid uplift in the mountain range.
Grammar
Dictionary form
uplift
IPA
GB/ˈʌplɪft/
US/ˈʌplɪft/
Syllables & stress
up - lift (2 syllables)
Stress on 1st syllable (up)
Word forms
Noun
- Base: uplift
- Plural: uplift
Verb
- Base: uplift
- 3rd Person Singular: uplifts
- Present Participle: uplifting
- Past: uplifted
Expressions
uplift (someone's) spirits
1/ʌplˈɪft sˈʌmwˌʌnz spˈɪɹɪts/
fixed phrase
make someone feel happier
to make someone feel better and happier
Examples
- A few minutes of sunlight can really uplift your spirits.
- Her message uplifted his spirits before the exam.
- They played upbeat songs to uplift everyone’s spirits.
uplift bra
1/ʌplˈɪft bɹˈɑ/
fixed phrase
bra that lifts and supports
a bra that lifts the breasts
Examples
- She bought an uplift bra for extra support.
- This uplift bra has wider straps and a firmer band.
- The ad claims the uplift bra creates a smoother shape under clothes.
uplift modeling
1/ʌplˈɪft mˈɑdəlɪŋ/
fixed phrase
technical
predict incremental treatment effect
a method to measure how much a campaign really changes behavior
Examples
- The team used uplift modeling to target customers who were most likely to respond to the offer.
- Uplift modeling helps estimate the incremental impact of a campaign, not just correlation.
- They compared uplift modeling results across different customer segments.