▪ I. lift, n.1 Obs. exc. Sc. and poet.
(lɪft)
Forms: 1 lyft, 2–3 luft(e (ü), 3 leoft, 4 lefte, lifte, lijft, 5–6 lyft, 4– lift.
[OE. lyft masc., neut., fem., corresponds to OS., OHG., MHG. luft masc., fem. (Du. lucht, G. luft fem.), ON. lopt neut. (see loft), Goth. luftus masc., fem.]
The sky, upper regions; † in early use also, the air, atmosphere. Also pl., the (seven) heavens.
| Beowulf 2832 Se widfloᵹa..nalles æfter lyfte lacende hwearf. c 1000 Sax. Leechd. II. 146 Romane him..worhton eorþ hus for þære lyfte wylme & æternesse. c 1175 Lamb. Hom. 79 Of þe uisces iþe wetere and fuȝeles iþe lufte. c 1205 Lay. 25585 Com an wunderlic deor, æst in þan leofte [c 1275 in þan lufte]. a 1225 Leg. Kath. 2124 Ich schal..leoten toluken þi flesch þe fuheles of þe lufte. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 5685 Þo hurde he..angles singe..Vpe in þe luft a murye song. a 1300 Cursor M. 10479 Sco lift hir hend vn-to þe lift And þus to prai sco gaf a scift. Ibid. 12871 Als he loked vp til heuen Open he sagh þe liftes seuen. 1340 Hampole Pr. Consc. 1444 Now se we þe lyfte clere and faire. a 1375 Sc. Leg. Saints xxviii. (Margaret) 316 Crist..þat..with mony sternis sere payntyt þe lyft. 1390 Gower Conf. I. 276 A vois was herd on hih the lifte Of which al Rome was adrad. c 1475 Rauf Coilȝear 326 The lyft lemit vp beliue, and licht was the day. 1500–20 Dunbar Poems xxxv. 49 Quhill that twa monis wer sene vp in the lift. a 1600 Montgomerie Misc. Poems xlviii. 182 The lift begouth for to ouercast with shours. 1759 Rural Love 10 The dearest lass beneath the lift. 1785 Burns Winter Night 4 When Phœbus gies a short-liv'd glow'r, Far south the lift. 1826 J. Wilson Noct. Ambr. Wks. 1855 I. 130 The sweet calm moon in the midnight lift. 1862 A. Hislop Prov. Scot. 107 If the lift fa' the laverocks will be smoored. 1870 Morris Earthly Par. III. iv. 40 The moon shines dolorous From out the rainy lift. |
b. attrib. and
Comb., as
† lift-fowl;
lift-like a., heaven-like.
| a 1225 Leg. Kath. 2245 Fode to wilde deor, & to luftfuheles. 1839 Bailey Festus xxi. 274 Long shroud-like lights Lit up its lift-like dome. |
▪ II. lift, n.2 (
lɪft)
[f. lift v.] I. The action or an act of lifting. (See also
dead lift.)
1. a. The action or an act of lifting, in various senses of the
vb.; a raising or rising; the distance through which anything is lifted and moved.
† to have the lift: to be hanged.
to be on the lift (Southern
U.S.): to be on the point of removing; also
fig. to be at the point of death (
Cent. Dict.).
| 1470–85 Malory Arthur xxi. v. 848 In the lyftyng the kyng sowned and syr Lucan fyl in a sowne wyth the lyfte. 1494 Fabyan Chron. vii. 536 After many showtis & lyftis at the gatis. 1570 Durham Depos. (Surtees) 190 He saith that he was comandyd by Brian to gyve a lifft at the aulter ston. 1604 W. Terilo Friar Bacon's Proph. 486 in Hazl. E.P.P. IV. 285 And thiefes must hang, and knaves must shift, And silly fooles must have the lift. 1626 Bacon Sylva §731 In the Lift of the Feet when a Man Goeth up the Hill, the Weight of the Body beareth most upon the Knees. 1632 Lithgow Trav. i. 29 [It] was transported miraculously..from Nazareth..17. hundred Italian miles, O! a long lift for so scuruie a Cell. 1692 R. L'Estrange Fables lxxxiii. (1708) 99 The Goat..gives the Fox a Lift, and so Out [of the Well] he Springs. 1704 F. Fuller Med. Gymn. (1711) 128 We must give an equal Lift to all the Parts. 1853 Kane Grinnell Exp. xliii. (1856) 397 We continue perched up, just as we were after our great lift of last December. 1857 C. Gribble in Merc. Marine Mag. (1858) V. 8 There was so much lift of sea. 1870 Lowell Among my Bks. Ser. i. (1873) 132 An almost imperceptible lift of the eyebrow. 1872 Browning Fifine lxxxi, No lift of ripple to o'erlap Keel, much less, prow. 1878 B. Taylor Deukalion i. v, The broader lift of this gray vault o'erhead. |
b. A help on the way given to a foot passenger by allowing him to travel some distance in a vehicle.
Cf. lift v. 11 e.
| 1712 Swift Jrnl. to Stella 17 June, I generally get a lift in a coach to town. 1825 Sporting Mag. XVI. 331 Instead of money for frequent ‘lifts,’ the driver receives..presents of game. 1844 Dickens Mart. Chuz. xxxv, To get a lift when we can. To walk when we can't. 1876 Geo. Eliot Dan. Der. IV. l. 8 Giving patience a lift over a weary road. 1929 M. de la Roche Whiteoaks v. 70 ‘Don't they ever send a car for you?’ ‘Good Lord, no. Sometimes I get a lift.’ 1944 J. S. Huxley On Living in Revolution ix. 106 We found that a bus recorded on the time-table was in reality non-existent; cadged a lift on a road foreman's car to Denness. 1955 Times 26 Aug. 7/4 After giving a ‘lift’ to a hitch-hiker one will have lost only a tablespoonful or two of petrol, perhaps a teaspoonful of oil, and a saltspoonful or two of rubber off the car's tires. 1974 ‘J. Le Carré’ Tinker, Tailor xxxiii. 293 Declining a lift, Smiley said the walk would do him good. |
c. Sc. and
north. dial. The removal of a corpse from the house for burial; the starting of a funeral procession.
| 1887 in Eng. Dial. Dict., s.v. 1897 G. Neasham Joshua Lax 7 The lift was announced to take place at 11 a.m. |
2. fig. a. In various immaterial applications,
e.g.: A ‘rise’ in station, prosperity, etc.; promotion; a rise in price; an act of helping, or a circumstance that helps, to a higher or more advanced position.
to give († lend) a lift: to ‘give a helping hand’
to.
† to give a lift at: to attack.
† to have (one) on the lift: ? to have at a disadvantage.
| 1622 Mabbe tr. Aleman's Guzman d'Alf. ii. 123, I did suffer them now and then to draw my money, but neither much, nor often, lest when they had me on the lift, they might haue left off. 1633 G. Herbert Temple, Communion v, Another lift like this will make Them both [body and soul] to be together. 1641 ‘Smectymnuus’ Vind. Answ. v. 66 We would intreat him to lend Bellarmine a lift in answering the famous Doctor Whitakers. 1651 N. Bacon Disc. Govt. Eng. ii. vi. (1739) 32 It is no wonder if the King feeling the incumbrance, gave a lift at the Pope's power, by stopping the current of Money from England, Rome-wards. 1667 Pepys Diary 24 Apr., The only lift to set him upon his legs. 1674 N. Fairfax Bulk & Selv. 69 To give the objection all the lifts we can. 1676 Otway Don Carlos iv. i. Plays (1888) 53 Thy foes are tottering, and the day's thy own, Give them but one lift now, and they go down. 1711 H. Lamp Autobiog. iii. (1895) 29, I..enter'd my cadet or voluntier in the King's Life Guard of Swissers, in order to get thereby a little lift. 1770 Burke Shortening Parlts. Wks. X. 82 A living was to be got for one,.. a lift in the Navy for a third. 1794 Godwin Cal. Williams 288 You have given the finishing lift to the misfortune that was already destroying him. 1809 Malkin Gil Blas ii. i. ¶2 My memory wants a lift. 1832 L. Hunt Sir R. Esher (1850) 120, I shall set myself more on a level with these gentry..by a lift in my fortunes. 1885 Manch. Exam. 14 Oct. 5/4 The extension of the franchise..has given an incalculable forward lift to the principles of the Alliance. 1897 Trans. Highld. Agric. Soc. 142 His spirit, action and style gave him a great ‘lift’ in the show-yard. |
b. An elevating influence or effect. Also, a cheering or encouraging influence or effect, a sense of elation.
| 1861 T. Hughes Tom Brown at Oxf. I. xiv. 281 He heard Drysdale's view halloa above all the din; it seemed to give him a lift. 1873 A. G. Murdoch Lilts on Doric Lyre 10 Sae jist to gie their hearts a lift..They cannilie put owre a dram. 1875 Lowell Spenser Prose Wks. 1890 IV. 308 The language and verse of Spenser at his best have an ideal lift in them. 1876 ― Among my Bks. Ser. ii. 3 The traveller feels the ennobling lift of such society. 1887 [see aspirational a.]. 1936 J. Dos Passos Big Money 498 Dick put down three bourbons in rapid succession but he wasn't getting any lift from them. 1951 E. Paul Springtime in Paris i. 12 Raoul realized that Katya got an enormous lift from secrecy and mystery, and helped her enjoy it. 1957 Sat. Even. Post 30 Mar. 102/2 The girl had to rush back to the pusher and complain that it didn't give her a lift. 1975 T. Allbeury Palomino Blonde xxiii. 135 Hallet had been demented with worry..and the ‘lift’ that he had got from his talk with Farrow had melted away. |
† c. A crisis or emergency;
= dead lift.
Obs.| 1624 Bp. R. Montagu Immed. Addr. 6 In Extremitie, when my life is at a lift, or my state set vpon a desperate Cast. 1632 Brome Novella iv. i. Wks. 1873 I. 145 Fear it not, Mistris, she is as sure at such a lift. |
3. An act of lifting or stealing; in older use,
† a shift, trick.
Obs. exc. dial.| 1592 Greene Upst. Courtier D, Such yoong youths..fall then to priuy lifts & cosenages. 1594 2nd Rep. Faustus in Thoms E.E. Prose Rom. (1858) III. 338 Such cranks, such lifts, careers and gambalds as he plaid there. 1621 B. Jonson Gipsies Metam. Wks. (1640) 54 If for our Linnen we still us'd the lift, And with the hedge..made shift. 1852 Judson Myst. & Mis. New York I. iv. 40 When I hear of the boys making a large lift, I always envy them. 1894 Laing Poems 12 (E.D.D.) For remember a' villains began wi' a lift That by some folk wad scarcely be reckoned a theft. |
4. The act or habit of carrying (the head, neck, eyes, etc.) aloft; elevated carriage.
| 1835 Willis Pencillings I. vii. 47 She is a little above middle height, with a fine lift to her head and neck. 1869 Blackmore Lorna D. xix, The proud lift of her neck was gone. 1870 Swinburne Ess. & Stud. (1875) 320 The head set firm on it without any droop or lift of the chin. 1889 A. Sergeant Esther Denison I. ii. xii. 159 There was a happy expectancy in the lift of her eyes as she walked up the country road. |
5. Technical uses.
a. Engineering. The action of lifting a load through a vertical distance, or one of several successive distances. Hence, in
Coal-mining, ‘a series of workings being prosecuted to the rise at one time’ (Gresley
Gloss. Coal-mining, p. 201).
| 1702 Savery Miner's Friend 59 If you have but one Lift one Station or Engine-Room will be sufficient. Ibid. 63 A Custom used in very deep Mines..of raising their Water by several Lifts from Cistern to Cistern. 1860 E. Hull Coalfields Introd. (1861) 5 The ‘Cannel’ seam is reached by means of two ‘lifts’ at a depth of 600 yards. 1867 Smyth Coal 100 The mines are from 300 to 500 feet deep, sunk in lifts of 40 to 50 feet at a time. |
b. Horology. The amount of motion of a watch-balance produced by each impulse of vibration.
| 1884 F. J. Britten Watch & Clockm. 73 If it is found that the lift is unequal from the point of rest the balance spring collet must be shifted in the direction of the least lift till the lift be equal. |
† c. Card-playing. The action of lifting or ‘cutting’ a pack of cards; also quasi-
concr. one of the portions into which the pack is so divided.
Obs.| 1674–80 Cotton Compl. Gamester 84 When they [fraudulent gamesters] deal..to their Partner they place in the second lift next the top, 1, 2, 3, or four Aces. 1728 Young Love of Fame vi. 545 When you're enamour'd of a lift or cast, What can the preacher more, to make us chast? |
d. The distance or extent to which anything rises,
e.g. a safety valve, the pestle of an ore stamp, the water in a canal-lock.
| 1829 J. Macauley Nat. & Civil Hist. N.Y. I. 170 This..lock has an extent within the gates of one hundred and fourteen feet, with a breadth of thirty—the lift is nine feet. 1837 J. T. Smith tr. Vicat's Mortars 306 Length of lift 3·937 inches. 1840 H. S. Tanner Canals & Railr. U.S. 252 The difference between the levels is termed the lift of the lock, which ranges from 3 to 30 feet. 1851 Illustr. Catal. Gt. Exhib. 232 Centrifugal pump for draining marshes..adapted for a large quantity of water, with a low lift. |
e. (
i) The upward force acting on an aircraft or other body in the air;
spec. that produced by its motion through the air; the force on an aerofoil that acts at right angles to its direction of motion through a fluid.
| 1902 Encycl. Brit. XXV. 104/1 The sustaining power, or ‘lift’,..in horizontal flight must be equal to the weight. Ibid., The present data indicate that, with concave surfaces, angles of 2° to 5° will produce adequate ‘lift’. 1919 H. Shaw Text-bk. Aeronaut. iii. 43 The upper surface of an aerofoil is considerably more important than the lower surface from the point of view of lift, as the suction over the top surface is numerically much greater than the pressure beneath. 1937 Dodge & Thompson Fluid Mech. vii. 127 Usually the component opposing the motion is referred to as the drag, while the cross-stream component is called the lift, even though it may not always be acting vertically upward. 1948 Sci. News VII. 23 In aerodynamics it is customary to resolve the reaction of the air on a surface into two components, namely lift, which is that part of the force acting upwards..and is thus desirable, and drag, which is the component at right angles to the lift and..resists the forward motion of the surface through the air. 1959 Chambers's Encycl. I. 110/2 In straight level flight the lift equals the weight. 1973 Nature 28 Sept. 182/1 Most flying insects depend, for their lift and thrust, on conventional aerofoil action which sets up a bound vortex around the moving wing to create a steady-state flow of air. 1974 Encycl. Brit. Macropædia I. 371/1 An airship derives lift from two sources: (1) by displacement of air as a balloon (static lift) and (2) from the reaction of airflow over its envelope and control surfaces when it is under way (dynamic lift). |
(
ii) The (maximum) weight that an aircraft can raise (including or, more commonly, excluding its own weight).
| 1910 Blackw. Mag. July 4/1 The compartments [of the Zeppelin] contained 351,150 cubic feet of hydrogen, giving a lift of eleven tons. 1929 Nature 14 Dec. 916/2 Recourse to the Servo-motor gear was not found necessary (if this holds good at full speed the gear may be removed, and then about ½ ton will be added to the useful ‘lift’). 1971 Daily Tel. 19 Aug. 2/6 It is much lighter and can be lifted by the Puma tactical transport helicopter, which has a total lift of up to 5,500 lb. |
f. Pros. An element of high intensity in an alliterative measure, marked by stress or tone. (G.
hebung.)
Cf. dip n. 1 g.
| 1894 [see dip n. 1 g]. 1927 E. V. Gordon Introd. Old Norse 293 The rhythm consists of regular alternation of strong and weak metrical elements, known as lift and sinking respectively. 1953 C. L. Wrenn Beowulf p. xxxvii, [Alliteration] is never repeated on the last lift. 1961 [see dip n. 1 g]. |
g. Dance. A movement in which a dancer lifts his partner in the air.
| 1921 Dancing Times Aug. 867/2 Miss Jules Andre..filled the roll [sic] of ‘boy’ in..many..numbers. Her lifts and adage work were delightful. 1943 K. Ambrose Ballet-Lover's Pocket-Bk. 40 With the invention of each new ballet, new lifts are devised. 1944 ‘Brahms’ & ‘Simon’ Titania has Mother ii. 11 ‘He's a frightfully bad dancer, mother. His lifts!’ She shuddered. 1950 Ballet Ann. IV. 69 She is equally at home in the most intricate acrobatic lifts..as [her body] is swung upwards in the air by her attendant cavaliers. |
h. Transport by air (
cf. air-lift 2); also, a number of persons or an amount of supplies so transported.
Cf. lift v. 11 i.
| 1942 F. D. Roosevelt in W. S. Churchill Second World War (1951) IV. xxx. 481 The following shipping can be made available by the United States..: Transports, other than combat leaders, with a lift of 52,000 men. 1947 Visct. Montgomery Normandy to Baltic 137 Our resources..made it impossible to fly in the whole of the Airborne Corps in one lift. 1947 M. Newnham Prelude to Glory ixiv. 350 The entire force was carried in one lift. 1949 Flight 15 Dec. 756/1 We eventually had sixteen crews, consisting of three members each, engaged whole⁓time on the Lift. |
i. The establishment by a sheepdog of control over a flock of sheep.
Cf. lift v. 11 g.
| 1942 R. B. Kelley Animal Breeding xi. 115 A little ‘eye’..can be associated meritoriously with a steady ‘lift’ and..restricts the dog from over-running a cast. 1946 F. Davison Dusty ix. 117 The [sheepdog] trial had four phases; the cast,..the lift, when the dog, having found them [sc. his sheep], established control over them; the fetch,..and the carry. 1955 Galloway Gaz. 1 Oct. 6 His dog ‘Garry’ won the Rosebowl for the best outrun and lift. 1964 Weekly News (Auckland) 29 Apr. 37/3 Fleet is losing points hand over fist now. He has failed to obtain a good ‘lift’: in other words he hasn't been able to head them unobserved and then start them moving gently and firmly. 1973 Country Life 25 Oct. 1292/1 From its position at 12 o'clock, the dog begins the critical ‘lift’, with a quiet authority that brooks neither refusal nor panic in the sheep. |
II. A person who lifts.
† 6. slang. One who lifts or takes away and appropriates (something); a thief. (
Cf. lift v. 8)
| 1592 Greene Art Conny Catch. ii. 22 The Lift is he that stealeth or prowleth any plate, iewels,..or such parcels from any place by a sleight conueance vnder his cloke. c 1600 Nobody & Somebody D 3 b, Talke not of the Gayle, 'tis full of limetwigs, lifts, and pickpockets. 1602 Rowlands Greenes Ghost 16 Richard Farrie a notable Lift of sixtie yeares of age. 1630 J. Taylor (Water P.) Trav. Twelvepence i. 71/1 Lifts, Foysts, Cheats, Stands, Decoyes. |
III. A device or apparatus for lifting.
7. Naut. pl. ‘Ropes which reach from each mast-head to their respective yard-arms to steady and suspend the ends’ (Smyth
Sailor's Word-bk.).
| 1485 Naval Acc. Hen. VII (1896) 36 Mayne lyftes..ij. 1611 Cotgr., Balancines, the lifts. 1627 Smith Seaman's Gram. v. 24 The top-sail Lifts doe serue for sheats to the top gallant yards, the haling them is called the Topping the Lifts. 1762 Falconer Shipwr. ii. 260 The parrels, lifts, and clue-lines soon are gone. 1860 Merc. Marine Mag. VII. 114 The yard is down on the lifts. |
8. a. Shoemaking. One of the layers of leather used to form a heel.
† b. Wool-carding (see
quot. 1688).
| 1677 Plot Oxfordsh. 139 The other [stone] in the shape of the heel of an old shoo, with the Lifts plainly to be distinguish'd. 1688 R. Holme Armoury iii. 92/2 The Lifts are the narrow pieces of Leather which are Nailed about to hold the Leaf on the Board. 1735 Dyche & Pardon Dict., Lifts,..among the Shoe-makers they are Pieces of Sole Leather put upon the Heels if wooden, or several of 'em one upon another if Leather, in order to make 'em higher or lower. 1880 Times 21 Sept. 4/4 The heels are built architecturally by selecting lifts of diminishing size. |
† 9. In a windmill: ?
= lift-tenter.
Obs.| 1688 R. Holme Armoury iii. 340/2 The Parts of a Wind-Mill..the Lift, that which raiseth the Mill-stones higher or lower. |
10. a. An apparatus for raising or lowering persons or things from one floor or level to another; an ascending chamber or compartment; a hoist;
= elevator 3 d. Also, the well or vertical opening in which the apparatus works.
| 1851 Illustr. Catal. Gt. Exhib. 230 The principle is applicable to dinner-lifts for hotels and mansions. 1858 Simmonds Dict. Trade, Lift,..an elevator for sending dishes, &c., up or down from a kitchen. 1861 A. Beresford-Hope Eng. Cathedr. 19th C. 128 Great central hotels with their machinery of lifts. 1861 Ann. Reg. 168 Throwing a quantity of waste paper, which he had collected on the upper floors, down the ‘lift’. 1878 Black Green Past. xxxii, We entered the lift to be conveyed to the floors above. |
b. chair-lift, a device for transporting people up a mountain slope, usually consisting of seats suspended from a continuously moving overhead cable;
ski-lift, a chair-lift, or any of various types of apparatus for hauling skiers uphill. Also
absol. lift.
| 1940 F. Elkins Compl. Ski Guide ii. 161 New 3500-foot ‘T-bar’ lift to connect with top of chair lift. 1947 Penguin New Writing XXX. 27 Dory found himself going up on the ski-lift with a Frenchwoman. 1953 C. J. Allen Switzerland's Amazing Railways viii. 93 A simpler application of the téléphérique principle is found in the chair-lift, known in French as a télésiège and in German as a Sesselbahn. 1955 W. Plomer Shot in Park 50 The ski-lift smoothly moves. 1958 Times 18 July 11/7 Skiing is also popular..in the Thredbo Valley, where Australia's first chair lift, a mile long, began to work this winter. 1970 Country Life 17–24 Dec. 1214/3 Recently, Norway has been developing ‘Alpine’ resorts where the ski-lifts, the equipment and the ski-schools closely resemble good centres in the Alps. 1972 M. Yorke Silent Witness ii. 12 The lifts, and even the cable-car..had stopped, for the snow..had been falling steadily. 1972 D. Haston In High Places vii. 82 Once above the ski-lift level it was still possible to have the whole of a range to one's self on a certain day. |
11. A contrivance on a canal serving as a substitute for a lock. Also
= lock n.2 9 c.
| 1825 [see lock n.2 9 c]. 1875 in Knight Dict. Mech. |
12. A set of pumps in a mine; also, the section of a shaft occupied by one set.
| 1849 Greenwell Coal-trade Gloss. (1851), Lift,..a column, or parallel columns, of pumps. 1855 Cornwall 255 A steam-engine..works nine lifts of pumps, and lifts thirty-six tons six cwt. per stroke. |
13. In various applications: see
shoe-lift (a shoe-horn),
window-lift.
IV. The thing lifted.
14. The quantity or weight that can be lifted at one time.
spec. of paper. Also
Sc. a large quantity.
| 13.. Coer de L. 3352 Off gold well twenty mennys lyffte. 1755 Johnson, Lift, in Scotland, denotes a load or surcharge of any thing. 1785 Burns 2nd Ep. J. Lapraik 74 Gie me o' wit an' sense a lift. 1808 C. Stower Printer's Gram. xvi. 405 Having thus doubled the first lift on the peel, he [sc. the warehouseman] raises it, holding it aslant, that the shorter fold of the sheets may open from the peel, in order to convey it over the pole. 1841 W. Savage Dict. Art of Printing 444 In the warehouse, each separate portion of printed paper, whether it consists of five or six sheets or more, that is placed upon the poles to dry, is termed a lift. 1861 Trollope Framley P. II. ii. 35, I have used up three lifts of notepaper already in telling people that there is no vacancy for a lobby messenger in the Petty Bag office. 1871 R. Browning Pr. Hohenst. 100 To find..from handlift and from barrow load, What salts and silts may constitute the earth. 1882 Ogilvie (Annandale) s.v., 2 cwt. is a good lift. 1888 C. T. Jacobi Printers' Vocab. 75 Lift, applied to a handful of printed work in the warehouse. 1967 V. Strauss Printing Industry x. 632 (caption) You see the lift of stock to be cut on the bed or table of the cutter. On the left the lift is lined up with one edge, in the rear it is lined up with another edge. 1971 D. Potter Brit. Eliz. Stamps xv. 175 Batches of 1,000 sheets are broken down into ‘lifts’ of 25. |
15. dial. A gate without hinges, that must be lifted in order to remove or open it.
| 1674 Ray S. & E.C. Word 70 A Lift: i.e. a Stile that may be opened like a gate, Norf. a 1825 Forby Voc. E. Anglia, Lift, a sort of coarse rough gate..not hung, but [etc.]. 1898 Rider Haggard in Longm. Mag. Nov. 25 The stouter undergrowth is split for hurdles and the rest of less substance twisted into another form of hurdle which is known as a ‘lift’. |
16. dial. A particular joint or cut of meat, usually of beef. (The precise application varies according to locality: see
quots.)
| 1688 R. Holme Armoury iii. 87/2 The Lift, or Buttock, is the Fleshy part of the Thigh of a Cow or Ox. 1790 A. Wilson To the Famishing Bard Poet. Wks. (1846) 55 A sirloin huge—a smoking lift, To feed thy keen devouring eye. 1854 A. E. Baker Northamptonsh. Gloss., Lift, 2. The meat taken out of a flitch of bacon, when the ham is left in;..the fleshy part of the leg. 1888 Sheffield Gloss., Lift, the upper part of the thigh of an ox. 1889 N.W. Linc. Gloss., Lift, half a round of beef. |
17. A rising ground.
| 1825 Scott Let. to Mrs. W. Scott 23 Mar. in Lockhart, He started the topic of our intended railroad... I had at my finger end every cut, every lift, every degree of elevation or depression, every pass in the country. 1874 Green Short Hist. i. §2. 7 A mere lift of higher ground with a few grey cottages dotted over it. 1885 Century Mag. Nov. 108 Here and there in the land were sharp lifts where rocks cropped out, making miniature cliffs overhanging some portions of the brook's course. |
V. 18. attrib. and
Comb. (several of these combs. should
perh. be referred to the
vb. stem), as (sense 1)
lift-capstan,
lift-pulley, (sense 10)
lift-attendant,
lift-boy,
lift-button,
lift-cage,
lift-man,
lift-railway,
lift-shaft,
lift-well; also
lift-bridge, a bridge that may be raised to allow the passage of a boat,
e.g. on a canal;
lift coefficient Aerodynamics, a ratio representing the lift developed by unit area of an aerofoil in relation to the air speed, and defined as the lift divided by the product of the aerofoil area (in plan) and the square of the air speed (and, in
mod. use, by half the air density also);
lift-drag a. Aerodynamics, relating to both lift and drag; applied
spec. to the ratio of the lift to the drag;
lift-fan, a fan in a hovercraft which provides the air-cushion;
lift-gate, (
a)
= sense 15 (Knight); (
b) a gate opening on to a lift (sense 10); (
c)
U.S. in a motor vehicle, a hinged back panel that opens upwards;
lift-hammer = tilt-hammer;
lift-latch, a latch that does not slide, but rises and falls;
lift-lock, a canal lock;
lift-pump, any pump other than a force-pump;
lift-slab attrib., applied to a labour-saving system of building whereby pre-cast components are raised by jacks to the position desired;
lift-tenter, in windmills, a governor for regulating the speed, by adjusting the sails, or for adjusting the action of grinding machinery according to the speed;
lift truck = fork-lift truck;
lift valve, a valve which opens by the valve head moving (vertically) out of its (horizontal) seat;
lift-wall (see
quot.);
lift-web, a strip of webbing joining the harness and the rigging lines of a parachute;
lift wire Aeronaut., a wire on a biplane or light monoplane that extends from the wing to the fuselage and is designed to transmit part of the lift to the latter during flight.
| 1900 Westm. Gaz. 28 June 6/2 The *lift attendant had sustained terrible injuries. |
| 1904 ‘Saki’ Reginald 15 *Lift-boys always have aged mothers. 1967 L. Meynell Mauve Front Door vi. 82 Chauffeurs, waiters, lift-boys..they are the operators. |
| 1850 Proc. Inst. Civ. Engin. IX. 203 Description of a Vertical *Lift Bridge. 1883 G. C. Davies Norfolk Broads & Rivers xxv. (1884) 190 At Haddiscoe is a lift-bridge, where a road crosses the Cut. |
| 1955 W. Tucker Wild Talent xiv. 186 The man punched the *lift button. 1970 P. Geddes November Wind vi. 64 Havill watched him press the lift button. |
| 1951 R. Senhouse tr. Colette's Last of Chéri 213 The *lift-cage heavily splashed with as much lacquer and gold as a sedan-chair. 1971 R. Petrie Thorne in Flesh xi. 145 A boy lounged on a stool in the silent lift-cage. |
| 1495 Naval Acc. Hen. VII (1896) 202 *Lyfte Capsteynes. |
| 1919 H. Shaw Text-bk. Aeronaut. iii. 39 As the angle of incidence increases the *lift coefficient also increases rapidly, until an angle of about 13° is reached, beyond which the coefficient increases less rapidly, and reaches its maximum value in the neighbourhood of 15°. 1933 Techn. Rep. U.S. Nat. Advisory Comm. Aeronaut. No. 463. 18 As speeds above half the velocity of sound are exceeded..the flow breaks down as shown by a drop in the lift coefficient. 1966 McGraw-Hill Encycl. Sci. & Technol. I. 85/2 The maximum lift coefficient (the stall value) of the wing is 1·1–1·5. |
| 1919 *Lift-drag ratio [see ceiling vbl. n. 6 b]. 1935 P. W. F. Mills Elem. Pract. Flying i. 6 Variations in incidence..affect lift and drag disproportionately, and thus produce variations in the quantitative relation between lift and drag—that is to say, in what is called the lift-drag ratio. 1960 Times Rev. Industry Oct. 58/3 [The] airstream direction detector system..enables an aircraft to be flown on the best lift-drag curve to maintain economic flight conditions. |
| 1962 Flight Handbk. (ed. 6) v. 98 The Republic AP-100, in which six J85 engines feed three *lift fans. 1967 Jane's Surface Skimmer Systems 1967–68 49/2 A drive-shaft runs vertically upward to the 12-blade lift-fan. |
| 1948 G. V. Galwey Lift & Drop i. 14 The crowd gathered at the *lift gates. 1951 J. Wyndham Day of Triffids i. 19, I found a large ‘5’ painted on the wall opposite the lift gate. 1961 Webster Lift gate, an upper rear panel (as on a station wagon) that opens upward as a tail gate opens downward. 1963 Aerospace-Automotive Drawing Standards (Soc. Automotive Engin.) 1 Liftgate, a hinged backwindow. 1970 Motor Trend World Automotive Yearbk. 1971 Buyer's Guide 112/3 The rear seat for a Gremlin is an optional extra along with the counter⁓balanced ‘lift-gate’ that comes with it. 1974 E. McGirr Murderous Journey 33 The liftman..was fiddling with the lift gate. |
| 1858 Simmonds Dict. Trade, *Lift-hammer, a large hammer. |
| 1875 Knight Dict. Mech., *Lift-latch lock. |
| 1840 H. S. Tanner Canals & Railr. U.S. 100 The Wisconisco Canal..has..6 *lift locks. |
| 1883 Daily Tel. 26 Feb. 7/8 Honest..man wants a situation..as *liftman. |
| 1485 Naval Acc. Hen. VII (1896) 37 *Left poles with iiij sheves of brasse..ij, left poles with ij sheves of brasse..ij. |
| 1858 Simmonds Dict. Trade, *Lift-pump, a pump acting by the pressure of the atmosphere on the external body of water. |
| 1893 Daily News 13 Mar. 3/7 The Clifton Rocks Railway, a *lift railway cut in a tunnel from the Gorge of the Avon to the summit of Clifton Rocks. |
| 1894 Times 14 Feb. 14/1 The door leading from the *liftshaft on to the next floor. |
| 1951 (title) Youtz-Slick *lift-slab building method (Inst. Inventive Res., San Antonio, Texas). 1960 Economist 22 Oct. 378/3 The ‘lift slab’ principle..was developed in America, the columns are first cast and erected, then pre-cast floor slabs are lifted by synchronised hydraulic jacks. 1962 Daily Tel. 30 Nov. 25/4 A 400,000-gallon watertank resting at the base of a tower before being raised 110 ft by the Lift Slab method... The 95 ft-diameter watertank was raised..in about 40 hours. |
| 1824 R. Stuart Steam Engine 133 The attached balls, which were called a *lift-tenter, by their centrifugal force either raised or lowered a stage in which the arbour of the spindle revolved, and brought the mill-stones nearer, or removed them farther from each other, as they might be adjusted. |
| 1963 H. Garner in R. Weaver Canad. Short Stories (1968) 2nd Ser. 56 Even with a *lift truck hurrying the parts to the forge we were falling behind. 1971 [see dozer2]. |
| 1887 Encycl. Brit. XXII. 505/1 In many stationary engines *lift or disk valves are used, worked by tappets, cams, or eccentrics. 1898 Engineering Mag. XVI. 108/1 Compression has been on the increase ever since the adoption of the lift valve. 1971 B. Scharf Engin. & its Lang. xii. 178 Poppet valves. These are spring loaded lift valves which are commonly used, e.g. in internal combustion engines. |
| 1841 S. C. Brees Gloss. Civ. Engin., *Lift-wall, the cross wall of a lock chamber. |
| 1942 Tee Emm (Air Ministry) II. 134 Pass the left hand in between the left harness *lift web and the body and grasp the right harness lift web. 1947 M. Newnham Prelude to Glory viii. 33 To reduce the risk of backward landings men were told..if necessary to turn their bodies by manipulation of the parachute lift-webs. 1958 P. Kemp No Colours or Crest iii. 41, I took a frantic pull on my liftwebs to ease the impact. |
| 1897 Daily News 3 Dec. 8/3 The deceased was found..at the bottom of the *lift-well. |
| 1915 W. E. Dommett Aeroplanes & Airships ii. 26 When the machine is in flight, the upward pressure on the wings is taken by ‘*lift’ wires or stays passing to a framework under the fuselage. 1942 C. C. Redman in R. A. Beaumont Aeronaut. Engin. xvii. 482/1 Wires running..inwards from the tip portions of the upper surfaces to inboard points of the lower surfaces adjacent to the fuselage—are known as ‘flying’ or ‘lift’ wires. |
Add:
[I.] [5.] [e.] (
iii) Upwardly-moving air which provides sufficient upward force to support a glider, etc., or to carry it higher. Freq. in the
phr. in lift.
| 1938 N. Heron-Maxwell tr. Hirth's Art of Soaring Flight 49 Karl Bauer was towed up in a Grunau Baby, and..found sufficient lift to enable him to make a good soaring flight. 1947 A. C. Douglas Gliding & Advanced Soaring ii. 44 By means of kiting to a height of 1800–2800{p}, the glider..obtains enough height to circle in lift without risk. 1978 A. Welch Bk. Airsports ii. 27/1 Very slowly the needle moves upwards; it is still showing sink, but not so much. Then, quite suddenly you are in the lift. 1986 Sailplane & Gliding Oct./Nov. 213/3 Flying in lift I reached the club and checked my watch. 1987 Pilot Apr. 16/1 Other gliders nearby are giving away useful information by..their changes in attitude [sic] as they dive to speed up through sinking air and pull up in any lift. |
j. Sport. Any of the set movements by which a weight-lifter lifts a weight or a wrestler lifts an opponent.
| 1908 Health & Strength Ann. 93 Continental lifts differ considerably from those in practice in this country. 1928 Ibid. 77 Lifters are urged to maintain themselves in a state of readiness on the three Olympic lifts. 1939 R. C. Hoffman Weight Lifting i. 17 Three lifts known as the Olympic lifts had been selected. For a time there were five lifts—the one hand snatch, the one hand jerk, the two hands press, the two hands snatch and the two hands clean and jerk. 1954 J. Murray Weight Lifting iii. 54 Each competitor has three trials in each of the three lifts. 1958 C. P. Keen et al. Championship Wrestling xiv. 170 A, to counter the lift, kicks backward to a prone position, changing the angle of lift. If B persists in attempting the lift, A keeps pushing backward, remaining prone. 1968 B. Douglas Wrestling 153 The wrestler from Arizona State..prepares for a lift and a sweep. 1980 S. Combs Winning Wrestling ii. 25 Practice actual body lifts with a partner, using each other as dead weight. 1992 Olympics 92 138/2 In Seoul Britain's leading heavyweight, Welshman Andrew Davies, failed to record a lift at all. |
k. Audio. A relative amplification of signals within a particular part of the audible range,
esp. the bass.
| 1962 A. Nisbett Technique Sound Studio 243 Boomy, subjective description of a sound quality which has resonances in the low frequencies, or a broad band of bass lift. 1970 J. Earl Tuners & Amplifiers iv. 95 With the two controls set to ‘zero’..there could be a little bass or treble lift or cut. 1975 G. J. King Audio Handbk. iii. 71 Bass lift occurs because C2 in the feedback path reduces the gain at high frequencies. |
[III.] [8.] [a.] Also, an extra layer added to the heel or sole of a shoe or a device worn in a shoe to make the wearer appear taller.
| 1862 Illustr. Catal. Internat. Exhib., Industr. Dept., Brit. Div. II. No. 3557 A lift for a short leg, and shell for boot: also a boot for a wooden leg. 1964 G. Vidal Julian iv. 46 Like the emperor Augustus he wore lifts in his shoes to make himself appear tall. 1977 J. D. MacDonald Condominium iii. 27 He was a short plump man in his forty-third year. The lifts in his shoes brought him up to five foot six and a fraction. 1986 Runner Mar. 12/2 If you have a leg shortage and it has not been accommodated with a lift, I suggest that you have someone measure and prescribe one for you. |
Sense 18 in
Dict. becomes 19. Add:
[IV.] 18. U.S. Criminol. A fingerprint,
esp. an impression of a fingerprint taken from an object as part of a criminal investigation. See sense 11 j of the
vb.| 1951 W. R. Scott Fingerprint Mechanics 182 It sometimes happens that a lift is lost or damaged. Ibid. 183 A second lift..reveals better ridge detail. 1957 Sci. of Fingerprints (U.S. Fed. Bureau of Investigation) xii. 176 Lifts, negatives and photographs are readily enclosed with letters. 1977 J. Wambaugh Black Marble (1978) ix. 182 It's very hard to get good lifts unless a surface is hard, smooth and clean. 1992 Police Chief (U.S.) Feb. 33/2 Fingerprint images are taken from a tenprint card or latent lift with a forensic-quality camera. |
▸
lift music n. chiefly
Brit. recorded background music played in a lift; (
freq. mildly
depreciative) music thought to resemble this,
esp. in being bland or unobtrusive;
= elevator music n. at
elevator n. Additions.
| 1960 Times 15 Aug. 3/3 The *lift music..might be the sort of lift music that Meyerbeer would have written if there had been lifts in the department stores of his day. 1966 Times 21 Dec. 8/7 Taped lift music... The lifts in the high hotel will be playing taped Christmas music. 1986 Courier-Mail (Brisbane) 20 Sept. 42/2 His critics snipe that his work resembles lift music or Muzak. 2004 Forestry & Brit. Timber (Nexis) 14 July 41 More inane lift music then after about 10 seconds that ominous continuous tone. I have been cut off. |
▪ III. lift, v. (
lɪft)
Forms: 4
leftyn, 4–5
lifte(n, 4–6
lyft(e, 5
lyften,
-yn, 4–
lift.
pa. tense 4–5
left(e,
lyft(e, 4–5
lifte, 4–7, 9
lift, 4
liftd,
-id,
-ud, 4–
lifted.
pa. pple. 4–6
lifte,
lyfte, 5–8 (9
poet.)
lift, 4–
lifted. Also 5
i-lift.
[a. ON. lypta (Sw. lyfta, Da. l{obar}fte) = MHG., mod.G. lüften:—OTeut. type *luftjan, f. *luft-us (ON. lopt air, sky = lift n.1). The etymological sense is therefore to move up into the air. The verb which occurs in the phrase
lutenn and lefften (see
lout v.), very frequent in the Ormulum, but not found elsewhere, has been commonly identified with this
vb., but neither the form nor the sense favours the identification. Apparently the phrase (which is followed by a
dat. of person) means ‘to show respect to’ (a superior), ‘to condescend graciously to’ (an inferior). It does not seem possible to connect
lefften with
OE. lyffettan to flatter.]
1. a. trans. To raise into the air from the ground, or to a higher position; to elevate, heave, hoist.
† Also, to erect, rear on high (a building).
† to lift (a child) from the font: to stand godfather to.
Occas., to lower after raising from an elevated position.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 2388 Abram..Bi betel lifted an auter neu. Ibid. 8963 Sco lift hir skirt wit-vten scurn And barfote wode sco þat burn. c 1440 Jacob's Well 78 In wrast⁓lyng, whan a chaumpyoun may lyften an-oþerys foot, þanne he throwyth hym doun. 1460 J. Capgrave Chron. (Rolls) 224 A child..whom the kyng..left fro the funt. 1590 Spenser F.Q. i. iv. 4 High lifted up were many loftie towres. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. iv. 499 Arethusa leaping from her Bed, First lifts above the Waves her beauteous Head. 1709 Steele Tatler No. 58 ¶2 Lifting his Legs higher than the ordinary Way of Stepping. 1712 Addison Spect. No. 433 ¶6 One who could lift Five hundred Weight. 1816 Scott Antiq. xx, He lifted his cane in terrorem. 1839 J. Yeowell Anc. Brit. Ch. x. (1847) 104 They had no inclination to lift the sword, except against each other. 1841 Lane Arab. Nts. I. 91 The Prince..lifted her from his horse. 1851 Illustr. Catal. Gt. Exhib. 1147 A..magnet capable of lifting a weight of 500 pounds. 1860 Tyndall Glac. i. xx. 137 The clouds were slowly lifted above the tallest peaks. 1873 Black Pr. Thule xviii. 282 Lavender made no further sign of surprise..than to lift his eyebrows, and say—‘Indeed!’ 1920 E. O'Neill Beyond Horizon ii. i. 73 Lifting Mary to the floor. |
b. with
up,
aloft,
away,
down,
off,
out, and
advb. phrases.
to lift up:
† occas. to install in a high seat.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 14332 Þe lid o tumbe awai þai lift. 1362 Langl. P. Pl. A. v. 203 For to lyfte hym aloft [he] leide hym on his knees. 1387 Trevisa Higden (Rolls) VII. 349 A whirle⁓wynd..lefte up sixe rafters of þe cherche. a 1400 Pistill of Susan 229 He lyft [v.r. left] vp þe lach. c 1450 Merlin 38 Than yede the peple to oon of the stones, and leften it vp. 1460 Lybeaus Disc. (Kaluza) 2057 Our on schall other lifte þe bedde of be þe chinne. 1509 Hawes Past. Pleas. xxxv. (Percy Soc.) 182 He stretched hym up and lyft his axe a lofte. a 1533 Ld. Berners Huon lxi. 213 They weyed vp theyr ancres & lyft vp theyr saylles. 1535 Coverdale Ps. cvii. 25 The stormy wynde aryseth, and lifteth vp the wawes therof. 1567 Gude & Godlie Ball. (S.T.S.) 44 That Prince on Croce thay lyftit on hicht. 1611 Bible Gen. xxxvii. 28 They..lift vp Ioseph out of the pit. 1640 tr. Verdere's Rom. of Rom. III. xxx. 129 The Knight of the Eagles presently lift up his Bever. 1686 Wood Life 29 Dec., M{supr} John Massy installed in his deane's place..first his patent was read: then his dispensation..and then he was lifted up. 1725 T. Lewis Antiq. Hebr. Rep. III. 270 When she had lift it [a shoe] up. 1772 Hutton Bridges 99 A large ram of iron..being lift up to the top of them. 1838 Dickens O. Twist II. xxi. 25 Sikes dismounted..holding Oliver by the hand..and, lifting him down directly, bestowed a furious look on him. 1871 R. Ellis tr. Catullus lxi. 121 Lift the torches aloft in air, Boys. 1887 Times (weekly ed.) 11 Nov. 7/4 The girls sang as if they wanted to lift themselves off the ground. 1890 A. Conan Doyle Sign of Four viii. 138 ‘He acted according to his lights,’ said Holmes, lifting him [sc. a dog] down from the barrel. 1898 G. B. Shaw Candida i. 106, I cant lift a heavy trunk down from the top of a cab. 1920 E. O'Neill Beyond Horizon ii. ii. 95 He lifts her down to the grass. 1940 W. Faulkner Hamlet iii. i. 212 He finds the basket by smell and lifts it down from the limb and sets it before her. |
† c. To bear, support.
Obs. rare—1.
| 1590 Spenser F.Q. i. xi. 54 Th' earth him underneath Did grone, as feeble so great load to lift. |
d. Sc. To take up, pick up. Hence in
Golf: To take up the ball.
| 1596 Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. iv. 206 Dionethie haueng receiued a gret..wound, he is lyfted be his awne. 1830 Galt Lawrie T. vii. ii. (1849) 309, I happened..to lift a newspaper. 1840 D. P. Blaine Encycl. Rural Sports 117 The ball nearest the hole must be lifted till the other is played. 1842 G. F. Carnegie Golfiana in Golfiana Misc. (1887) 81 Now, lift the stones, but do not touch the ball. 1890 Hutchinson Golf 447 Gloss. s.v., To lift a ball is to take it out of a hazard and drop or tee it behind. |
e. In occasional uses,
= raise:
† (
a) in
pass., to rise (
obs.); (
b)
colloq. to bring (a constellation) above the horizon in sailing, etc.
| c 1420 Pallad. on Husb. iv. 813 Ybrestid brode, and al the body lift In brawnys grete. c 1477 Caxton Jason 69 Thenne sodainly rose and was lift a tempeste. 1891 R. Kipling Light that failed vii, She'll [the steamer on her way to Australia] lift the Southern Cross in a week. |
f. To help (sick or weak cattle) to stand up.
Cf. lifting vbl. n. 1 b.
| 1899 H. G. Graham Social Life Scotl. 18th Cent. I. 155 Cattle..after the long confinement and starving of winter, were mere skeletons, and required to be lifted on their legs when put into the grass. |
g. = face-lift vb. (
face n. 27). Also
transf.| 1922 Ladies' Home Jrnl. Sept. 28/2 For a skillful surgeon to ‘lift’ a woman's face—that is, to remove crescent-shaped pieces of skin, near the ears, and at the hair line, thus lifting the cheeks that have begun to sag and so removing the lines of age about the mouth—is actually a simple operation and practically without danger. 1931 Daily Express 2 Sept. 3/5 A woman can now have her face lifted one day and appear among her friends the next. 1934 R. Macaulay Going Abroad i. 12 Mrs. Aubrey, bored, felt that they wanted her to have her face lifted, de-wrinkled..and given a lick of paint. 1951 G. Mikes Down with Everybody 71 Modern nationalism is an attempt to see ourselves without the warts; and many historians, writers and poets are the masseurs and cosmeticians of the national beauty parlours, trying to dye our greying hair golden-blonde and trying to lift our faces. 1959 Cambr. Rev. 30 May 549/2 Whole courts have had their faces lifted, with stonework freshly dressed or replaced, stucco renewed. 1974 M. Cecil Heroines in Love vi. 149 She..could cling on to her youth..by having her face lifted. |
h. (not) to lift a finger: see
finger n. 3 a.
2. a. In immaterial sense and
fig.: To elevate, raise. Also with
out,
up, and
advb. phrases.
† to lift (a person) out: to get (him) displaced.
† Also (?
nonce-use), to raise, excite (wonder).
| a 1300 Cursor M. 25743 Penance sothfast and schrifte..quen we fall vp mai vs lifte. a 1340 Hampole Psalter xxii. 6 Þou has purged my hert, and liftid vp to haf þe ioy of contemplacioun. 13.. E.E. Allit. P. B. 586 If he has losed þe lysten hit lyftez meruayle. 1497 Bp. Alcock Mons Perfect. C ij, Lyfte fro the erth, refresshed w{supt} ghostly contemplacion. a 1533 Ld. Berners Gold. Bk. M. Aurel. (1546) B b, Philosophers..who fyrste lyfted theim selues to regarde the sterres of the heuen. 1581 E. Campion in Confer. iii. (1584) Q iij b, It is our affection..that must be lift vp. 1659 Wood Life Dec. (O.H.S.) I. 299 Carrying tales to the great persons and endeavouring to lift one another out. 1711 Steele Spect. No. 51 ¶4 It lifts an heavy empty Sentence, when there is added to it a lascivious Gesture of Body. 1817 Chalmers Astron. Disc. i. (1852) 19 There is much in the scenery of a nocturnal sky to lift the soul to pious contemplation. 1864 Mrs. Carlyle Lett. III. 224 With so rich a husband she would be able to lift them out of all their difficulties. 1893 Liddon, etc. Life Pusey I. iv. 327 Pusey's paper..lifted it [the subject] at once into the region of principle. |
b. To raise in dignity, rank, or estimation; to elevate, exalt. Also with
up and
advb. phrases. Now
rare.
| c 1330 R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 10 Whan þe kyng Kynwolf had don his endyng, Brittrik his kosyn þei lift him to kyng. a 1340 Hampole Psalter viii. 2 For liftid is þi worship abouen heuens. c 1440 Gesta Rom. lxv. 280 (Add. MS.) Whan he was thus I-lifte up, his herte was enhaunsed in pride. c 1450 tr. De Imitatione iii. lxiii. 145 Sonne, be war þat þou dispute not..why þis is so gretly peyned, & he is so excellently lifte up. 1526 Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 6 b, Whom they moost extoll and lyfte vp moost heye, they forsake soonest. 1591 Sylvester Du Bartas i. vii. 233 His envious brethren's trecherous drift, Him [Joseph] to the Stern of Memphian State had lift. 1597 Hooker Eccl. Pol. v. xx. §12 Neither can it be reasonablie thought..that we thereby do offer disgrace to the word of God, or lift vp the writings of men aboue it. 1639 Fuller Holy War ii. ii. (1647) 45 Arnulphus..was by popular faction lifted up into the Patriarchs chair. 1883 R. W. Dixon Mano i. xv. 48 Then was he lifted to his former style, Archbishop of Ravenna he became. |
| absol. 1611 Bible 1 Sam. ii. 7 The Lord..bringeth low, and lifteth vp. |
c. Chiefly with
up: To cheer, encourage. Also, To elate, puff up (with pride).
† to lift up oneself of (something): to pride oneself upon. Now
dial. and
arch.| c 1450 tr. De Imitatione i. ii. 3 Be not lifte up þerfore for eny crafte or eny kunnyng. Ibid. vii. 8 Lifte not up þiself of gretnes. 1572 R. H. tr. Lauaterus' Ghostes (1596) 108 Gabriel with comfortable words did lift up the blessed Virgin which before was sore troubled by this Salutation. 1586 T. B. La Primaud. Fr. Acad. i. (1594) 50 He should not be cast downe too much in adversitie, nor lift up beyond measure in prosperitie. 1611 Bible 2 Chron. xxvi. 16 But when he was strong, his heart was lifted vp to his destruction. 1875 Jowett Plato (ed. 2) V. 62 He who is lifted up with pride,..is soon deserted by God. 1890 Hall Caine Bondman ii. ii, It had lifted up his heart that Greeta had chosen poverty..before plenty. 1896 ‘Ian Maclaren’ Kate Carnegie 207 Gin ye juist jined the fouk..the auctioneer would be lifted. |
d. To raise in price, value, or amount. Also
ellipt.| 1907 Daily Chron. 7 Nov. 1/7 Home Rails were lifted all round..several rises being substantial. 1928 Chambers's Jrnl. Feb. 99/2 He kept on lifting the betting, merely to increase his plunder. Ibid. 115/2 Jackson..opened the pot for a pound. The American..raised it five, and Captain Reginald lifted another five. 1962 A. Nisbett Technique Sound Studio 272 To lift programme level ‘a stop’ is to increase it by turning the fader (potentiometer) from one stud to the next. |
3. intr. for refl. (also with
up).
a. To rise. Said
esp. of a vessel riding on the waves,
occas. of the waves themselves. Also in
quasi-pass. sense (
e.g. of a window): To admit of being raised.
| a 1400–50 Alexander 1942 We þan lift vp a lite & lent him a-gayne. 1526 Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 20 b, So that his body lyfted aboue his bedde foure fote or more. 1757 Capt. Randall in Naval Chron. XIV. 95 Although there was a great Sea running, she did not lift. 1807 Coleridge Lett. (1895) 515 This most morbid and oppressive weight is gradually lifting up. 1844 W. H. Maxwell Sports & Adv Scot. xxxiii. (1855) 262 The windows would not lift. 1861 Thornbury Turner II. 319 Rough days, when..he sat..in boats lifting over enormous waves. 1876 Blackmore Cripps I. ii. 19 The water..instead of ruffling lifted. 1887 Bowen Virg. æneid iii. 205 Not till the fourth day broke was the land seen lifting afar. 1892 Blackw. Mag. CLI. 78/2 Fowl lift only a few inches from the water. 1897 R. Kipling Capt. Cour. i, The big liner rolled and lifted. |
(
ii) Of an aircraft: to rise
off the ground.
| 1879 English Mechanic 4 July 410/3 The small flying model..only just lifted off the pavement. 1899 H. G. Wells When Sleeper Wakes xxiv. 327 The aëropile..was running down its guides to launch. It lifted clean and rose. 1907 Daily Chron. 9 Oct. 4/5 She will have to get rid of at least 250 lb. of ballast before she will lift. 1973 J. Drummond Bang! Bang! You're Dead! xliv. 151 By the time Sorensen and Pittaway were lifting off the Wapping tarmac, certain constables..were already deploying... They saw the helicopter about the same time as Mariner did. |
(
iii) Hence in recent use
off has changed from being a preposition to being an adverb in Astronautical contexts.
| 1959 W. A. Heflin Aerospace Gloss. 57/2 To lift off, to take off in a vertical ascent. 1961 Burchett & Purdy Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin ii. 27 The giant ship lifts off..in a hurricane of white-hot flames. 1971 Sci. Amer. Oct. 49/2 On July 21, 1969, Eagle lifted off from the moon with its 22-kilogram cargo of lunar rocks and soil. |
b. Of a sail (see
quot. 1867).
| 1810 Capt. Tucker in Naval Chron. XXIV. 337 By keeping the sails lifting,..we contrived to drift in. 1860 Merc. Marine Mag. VII. 114 This must not be hauled too taut so as to hinder the sail from lifting. 1867 Smyth Sailor's Word-bk., Lift, a term applied to the sails when the wind catches them on the leeches and causes them to ruffle slightly. |
c. Of clouds, fog, etc.: To rise and disperse. Also (
U.S.) of rain: To cease temporarily.
| 1834 M. Scott Cruise Midge vi. (1842) 102 The clouds..lifted from the eastern horizon majestically slow. 1858 Froude Hist. Eng. III. 349 One morning when the darkness lifted, sixty strange sail were found at anchor in the Downs. 1870 E. Peacock Ralf Skirl. II. 178 The thick fog had lifted. 1901 [see lifting vbl. n.]. |
| fig. 1897 M. Kingsley W. Africa 232 My..head-ache..soon lifted. |
d. Of a floor, etc.: To swell or warp and rise.
| 1793 Smeaton Edystone L. §268 Those four stones..should be provided..with trenails to hinder them from lifting. 1840 Jrnl. R. Agric. Soc. I. iii. 272 A limestone road..lifts more in frost than a gravel one. 1874 Thearle Naval Archit. 116 The great tendency of the deck to lift..when these heavy guns are fired over it. 1899 Daily News 13 Nov. 7/5 The concrete platforms..lifted when test guns were fired. |
† e. Of a horse: To rear, to raise the feet (high).
f. To rise in tone or volume of sound.
| 1912 Galsworthy Inn of Tranquility 157 He seemed to enjoy the sounds of conversation lifting round him. 1918 ― Five Tales 340 The wayward music lifted up again. |
g. Printing.
intr. Of a forme of type, to stay in one piece when raised from the surface on which it has been assembled;
= rise v. 13 c. Also
trans., to raise (lines of type),
esp. in moving them from a composing stick to a galley, or in preparation for the distribution of used type.
| 1854 T. Ford Compositor's Handbk. 247 Lift, this term applies to the raising of a form from the stone. It is said to Lift when no letters drop out. The same term is applied at press when the pressmen are required to Lift a form before it is worked off. 1884 J. Gould Letter-Press Printer (ed. 3) 34 Before lifting the forme off the stone, raise it a little and observe carefully if any letters, &c., are loose and likely to fall out. If the forme ‘lifts’, take it from the imposing-stone to the proof-press. 1892 A. Powell Southward's Pract. Printing (ed. 4) xxi. 184 Lock up finally, so that the forme will lift. Ibid. 185 The next thing to be done is to ‘see if it [sc. the forme] will lift’; that is, if it can be raised up from the imposing surface without any letters falling out. 1932 Sayers & Smart in W. Atkins Art & Pract. Printing I. iv. 48 If the job contains lines interspersed of the same size and fount (as in display) ‘lift’ these and place together. 1961 H. W. Larken Compositor's Work in Printing viii. 95 When type matter is being lifted, it should be handled firmly. Ibid. 96 When lifting single lines from a galley or forme, use the side of the galley or the furniture. Ibid. 97 Type that is to be distributed should..be lifted in the same manner as that employed for removing it from the stick... The lifted type is allowed to rest on the third finger of the left hand. 1967 Karch & Buber Offset Processes 544 When each piece of type in a form stays in place after being locked in a chase, it is said to ‘lift’. |
† 4. to lift at:
a. To pull at (something) in the attempt to raise it.
lit. and
fig. b. To rise in opposition to. Also in
indirect passive.
Obs.| 1530 Palsgr. 611/1, I have lyfted at this same this halfe hour: jay hallé a cecy ceste demye heure. 1573 Tusser Husb. li. (1878) 115 Lift at their [viz. cattle's] tailes er an Winter be past. 1607 Drayton Leg. T. Cromwell Wks. (1748) 222 Secret foes..lifted at my state. 1647 May Hist. Parl. i. ix. 113 Bishops had been much lifted at, though not yet taken away. 1658 W. Gurnall Chr. in Arm. verse 14 (1669) 76/1 The principle of holiness..makes him lift at that duty which he can little more than stirr. 1690 Andros Tracts II. 39 Some others..have lifted at the Fourth [commandment]. a 1704 Locke Cond. Und. §27 Like the Body strain'd by lifting at a Weight too heavy. |
5. trans. In various phrases chiefly Hebraisms, or in the Hebrew manner.
a. to lift (up) one's eyes,
brow,
face,
visage: to give an upward direction to the eyes, etc.; to look up.
lit. and
fig. † Hence
to lift up one's ears: to listen attentively.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 17837 Til heuen þai lifted þair eien brade. c 1420 Anturs of Arth. 408 He lyfte vpe his vesage fro þe ventalle. 1535 Coverdale Ps. cxxi. 1, I lift vp myne eyes vnto the hilles. 1550 Crowley Inform. & Petit. 5 Herken you possessioners, and you rich men lyfte vp your ears. 1611 Bible Job xxii. 26 For then shalt thou haue thy delight in the Almightie, and shalt lift vp thy face vnto God. 1854 S. Dobell Balder xxv. 176 With brow Lift to the glowing sun. 1855 Macaulay Hist. Eng. xii. III. 151 It was whispered that he had dared to lift his eyes to an exalted lady. |
b. to lift (up) the hand(s, (occas. one's arm): (
a)
gen.; (
b) in prayer, thanksgiving, etc.; (
c) in taking an oath; (
d) in hostility
against (a person); (
e) to do a stroke of work (
mod. slang).
| (a) 1340 Hampole Pr. Consc. 7976 Ne myght have anes to lyft þair hand To wype þe teres fra þair eghen oway. 1758 Johnson Idler No. 57 ¶9 He lifts up his hands with astonishment. |
| (b) a 1300 Cursor M. 4767 Oft he liftud vp his hend To godd, þat he helpe þam wald send. 1382 Wyclif 1 Tim. ii. 8, I wole..men for to preie in al place, liftynge up clene hondis with oute wraththe. c 1435 Torr. Portugal 1274 To God, he did his hondys lifte, And thankid hym of his sond. 1634 Sir T. Herbert Trav. 24 A Negro..lift up his hands, invocating Mahomet or the Devil. 1807 Robinson Archæol. Græca iii. v. 222 In praying it was likewise customary to lift up the hands towards heaven. |
| (c) 1535 Coverdale Gen. xiv. 22, I lift vp my honde vnto the Lorde, the most hye God. a 1626 Bacon New Atl. (1900) 4 At which Answear the said Person lift up his Right Hand towards Heaven. 1845 M. Pattison Ess. (1889) I. 22 Chilperic lifted his hands, and calling the Almighty to witness, swore that, etc. 1897 R. Kipling Capt. Cour. 52 Seventeen brass-bound officers, all gen'elmen, lift their hand to it that [etc.]. |
| (d) 1535 Coverdale Ps. cv[i]. 26 Then lift he vp his honde agaynst them, to ouerthrowe them in the wildernes. 1654–66 Earl of Orrery Parthen. (1676) 180 He has lift up his prophane Arm against his generous Deliverer. 1804 J. Grahame Sabbath 340 The murderer—let him die, And him who lifts his arm against his parent. |
| (e) 1889 ‘Rolf Boldrewood’ Robbery under Arms xlviii, He would not lift his hand for any one that day. |
c. to lift up one's head: (
a)
literally; (
b)
fig. to regain courage or energy; to renew one's efforts, to rally.
† to lift up the head of (a person); used in the Bible for: to bring out from prison; restore to liberty or position of dignity.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 22522 All bestes..Vp þan sal þair hefds lift Apon vr lauerd for to cri. c 1385 Chaucer L.G.W. 882 Thisbe, And therwithal he leftyth vp his hed. c 1400 Mandeville (1839) iv. 24 The Dragoun lifte up hire Hed aȝenst him. 1535 Coverdale 2 Kings xxv. 27 The kynge of Babilon..lifte vp the heade of Ioachim y⊇ kynge of Iuda out of preson. 1560 Bible (Genev.) Judg. viii. 28 Thus was Midian broght lowe..so that they lift vp their heads nomore. 1611 Bible Luke xxi. 28 1838 Thirlwall Greece V. 185 Olynthus..in the decline of the Spartan power had begun to lift up her head again. |
d. to lift up one's heart,
mind,
soul: to raise one's thoughts or desires; to encourage, exalt oneself (with pride).
| 1535 Coverdale Ps. xxv. 1 Vnto the (o Lorde) I lift vp my soule. 1548–9 (Mar.) Bk. Com. Prayer, Communion, Lift vp your heartes. 1611 Bible 2 Chron. xvii. 6 His heart was lift vp in the wayes of the Lord. ― Dan. v. 20 When his heart was lifted vp, and his minde hardened in pride. 1719 De Foe Crusoe i. xviii. (1840) 327, I forgot not to lift up my heart in thankfulness to heaven. |
e. to lift (up) a cry,
lift one's voice, etc.: to cry out loudly. Also
fig.| 1382 Wyclif Luke xvii. 12 Ten leprouse men..reyside [v.r. lifteden, liften] the vois, seiynge. 1413 Pilgr. Sowle (Caxton 1483) iii. iii. 52 Thenne sawe I two spirites that liften vp a wondre hidous crye. 14.. Tundale's Vis. (1843) 2302 And or he spake any thyng He lyfte up a greyt sykyng. 1535 Coverdale Judg. ii. 4 The people lifte vp their voyce, & wepte. 1581 Sidney Apol. Poetrie (Arb.) 65 Fit to lift vp a loude laughter, and nothing els. 1742 Wesley Wks. (1872) I. 351 A rude rout lift up their voice on high. 1845 M. Pattison Ess. (1889) I. 28 The voice of the dauntless Gregory was lifted in behalf of the deserted and friendless Praetextatus. 1873 Burton Hist. Scot. V. liv. 82 He had..an opportunity of lifting his protest against the greatest crime of his age. 1887 Bowen Virg. Eclog. v. 62 Lo! with joy to the heavens they lift their glorious voice. |
f. to lift up one's heel,
horn (see those
ns.).
6. To bear or carry in an elevated position; to ‘hold high’. (With some attributed notion of sense 1.)
| 1671 Milton P.R. iv. 48 There the Capitol thou seest Above the rest lifting his stately head On the Tarpeian rock. 1732 Pope Ep. Bathurst 340 Where London's column, pointing at the skies, Like a tall bully, lifts the head, and lies. 1764 Goldsm. Trav. 204 Dear [is] that hill which lifts him to the storms. 1805 Wordsw. Prelude iii. 4 We saw The long-roofed Chapel of King's College lift Turrets and pinnacles in answering files. |
7. To take up or collect (rents or moneys due); to levy (contributions, fines, etc.); to draw (wages, the amount of profits, etc.). Now
dial.| 1413 Pilgr. Sowle (Caxton 1483) iv. xxxiii. 81 They haue for to sene that his rentes and revenues and suche other auantages rightwysly to be lyfte. 1473 in Laing Charters (1899) 43, viij markis..be ws to be lyftyt ande rasit as for oure saide tairs. 1491 Act 7 Hen. VII, c. 18 If the seid fyne had never be lifte. a 1639 Spottiswood Hist. Ch. Scot. ii. (1677) 59 His person arrested, his Rents lifted by the Kings Officers. 1722 Ramsay Three Bonnets iv. 79 He's sent To Fairyland to lift the rent. 1748 Smollett Rod. Rand. xvi. (1760) I. 106 Entitling that person to lift his wages when they should become due. 1799 in J. Smith Hist. Jefferson Coll. (1857) 165 That a collection be lifted for the purpose of purchasing such a Dictionary as may be thought necessary for the Society. 1814 Byron To Moore 3 Aug., Whose ‘bills’ are never ‘lifted’. 1869 Gibbon R. Gray v, The Laird lifted his rent. |
8. slang. To take up (a portable object;
cf. 1 d) or drive away (cattle) with dishonest intentions; in wider sense, to steal; to steal something from (a shop, etc.); to rob.
Cf. shop-lifting.
| 1526 Skelton Magnyf. 1373 Conuey it be crafte, lyft & lay asyde. 1592 Greene Upst. Courtier G 3, It is reported you can lift, or nip a bounge, like a guire [sic] Coue. 1595 Recorder Fleetwood in Ellis Orig. Lett. Ser. i. II. 303 Lyfte is to robbe a shoppe or a gentilmans chamber. 1666 Dryden Ann. Mirab. ccxxviii, But if night-robbers lift the well⁓stored hive, An humming through their waxen city grows. a 1670 Spalding Troub. Chas. I (Bannatyne Club) I. 25 Ther came a company of highlanders, and lifted out of Frendraucht's ground, ane number of goods. 1722 Ramsay Three Bonnets i. 78 Thieves that came to lift their cattle. 1814 Scott Wav. xviii, Donald Bean Lean never lifted less than a drove in his life. 1840 Thackeray Paris Sk.-bk. (1869) 74 He took to his old courses, and lifted a purse here, and a watch there. 1873 Dixon Two Queens I. vi. ii. 307 More [Scots] were bent on lifting kine and sheep. 1881 A. Lang Library 52 He used to tell how he had lifted a book..from a stall on the Pont-Neuf. 1892 R. Kipling East & West in Barrack-room Ballads 75 He has lifted the Colonel's mare that is the Colonel's pride. 1905 E. Wallace Four Just Men ix. 165 They was waitin' to cross towards Charing Cross Road when I lifted the clock. 1968 J. Lock Lady Policeman xix. 159 Goods from three or four stores would be found in them. Others would ‘lift’ a shopping bag first in which to put all the other ‘lifted’ goods. 1973 J. Wainwright Devil you Don't 107 Lift a bleedin' gun from somewhere. |
| transf. 1885 Spectator 10 Jan. 51/2 In painting-in his background, he is, therefore, reasonably entitled to ‘lift’ his materials wherever he finds them. 1892 Nation (N.Y.) 15 Dec. 456/3 All that is vitally concerned with Lincoln, is lifted bodily from Herndon's book. |
† 9. The technical word for: To carve (a swan). (The text of
quot. c 1500
app. contains some error.)
| c 1500 For to serve a Lord in Babees Bk. (1868) 374 Begynne at the lifte legge first of a Swan; and lyfte a gose y-reared at the right legge first. 1513 Bk. Keruynge ibid. 266 Lyfte that swanne. 1804 Farley Lond. Art Cookery (ed. 10) 293 To lift a swan, you must slit it quite down the middle of the breast. |
10. Card-playing.
intr. To cut (for deal). ?
Obs.| 1599 Minsheu Span. Dial. (1623) 26, I lift to see who shall deale, it must be a coat card. 1608 Machin & Markham Dumb Knt. iv. i. H 3 b, But come, lift for the dealing, it is my chance to deale. 1674–80 Cotton Compl. Gamester 86 At French-Ruff you must lift for deal. |
11. trans. a. To take up and remove, take away; to drive (cattle) away or to market, to strike (a tent);
Sc. to remove (a corpse) for burial; also
absol. fig., to remove, discontinue (restrictions, an embargo, etc.).
| a 1670 Spalding Troubl. (Bannatyne Club) I. 236 The said day Monro lifts his camp frae Strathbogie. 1816 Scott Bl. Dwarf xiii, We seem to be met at a funeral..Ellieslaw, when will you lift. 1832 H. Martineau Ireland i. 11 That's better than seeing them lifted to the pound. 1835 James Gipsy ii, I fear that we shall be obliged to lift our tents, and quit this pleasant nook. 1836 Mrs. Browning Poet's Vow v. xv, They came at dawn of day To lift the lady's corpse away. 1840 Edin. Even. Courant 19 Sept., We anticipate rather dull sales now, for a week or two, until the St Faith's droves are lifted. 1856 Kane Arct. Expl. II. vii. 79 Nearly all my hopes of lifting the sick..rest upon these dogs. 1882 Macm. Mag. XLVI. 164 When an invitation is being given verbally to a funeral in Scotland, the person invited usually asks, ‘When do you lift?’ 1886 C. Scott Sheep-Farming 118 If..a good ewe requires a lamb [her own being dead], it may be advisable to lift a small gimmer's lamb, and put it to her. 1890 Pall Mall G. 18 Sept. 7/1 A large number of families went to the church and lifted their books. 1890 ‘R. Boldrewood’ Squatter's Dream iv. 45, I haven't lifted a finer mob this season. 1890 Argus (Melbourne) 14 June 4/2 We lifted 7000 sheep. 1891 Newcastle Even. Chron. 31 Jan. 2/1 Interment on Sunday; to lift at Two o'clock. 1896 Daily News 4 Sept. 3/4 Some hot-headed proposals were made, one being to lift tools at once. 1936 A. Russell Gone Nomad i. ii. 11, I hope his droving mission, that of ‘lifting’ a thousand head of cattle for the markets of the south, was attended with the success it merited. 1941 I. L. Idriess Great Boomerang x. 75 Red Bill and his gang lifted their cattle. They headed south-west and got safely across to the Paroo. |
| fig. 1906 Daily Chron. 12 Sept. 5/7 It was freely said that if we only applied the suspensions would be lifted. 1974 Nature 25 Jan. 171/3 Even if the embargo is suddenly lifted, it will take several weeks for the oil to reach United States ports. 1974 Daily Tel. 4 Apr. 17/1 The university authorities yesterday lifted the temporary suspension on deliveries of supplies to the campus. |
b. U.S. to lift (a person's) hair: to scalp.
| 1848 G. F. Ruxton Life in Far West 37 ‘We'll lift the hair, any how’, continued the first, ‘afore the scalps cold’. |
c. U.S. To get rid of, pay off (a mortgage).
| 1879 J. Burroughs Locusts & W. Honey 79 The weather must lift the mortgage on his farm, and pay his taxes. 1886 Stockton Lady or the Tiger 74 So then the spectral mortgage could never be lifted. |
d. Hunting. (See
quot. 1968.) Also, to disperse (scent).
| 1781 P. Beckford Thoughts on Hunting x. 147 By lifting his hounds too much, he will teach them to shuffle. 1843 Ainsworth's Mag. IV. 125, I seldom allow hounds to be lifted, except to a beaten fox. Ibid., To lift, in that case, is proper and justifiable. 1863 C. Mordaunt Diary 6 Mar. in Mordaunt & Verney Ann. Warwickshire Hunt (1896) I. 264 [The hounds] had to be lifted several times to holloas. 1919 J. Masefield Reynard ii. 85 He heard the sounds Of a cantering huntsman, lifting hounds; The ploughman had raised his hat for a sign, And the hounds were lifted and on his line. 1929 St. Andrews Citizen 16 Mar. 7 Fife Foxhounds had three poor days last week. Although the weather was good, the bright, warm sunshine ‘lifted’ scent. 1968 J. Gordon Beagle Guide 172 Lift, to remove hounds from a lost scent with the idea of trying to hit the line further on. |
e. To give a lift to (in a carriage, motor vehicle, etc.).
Cf. lift n.2 1 b.
| 1884 E. W. Hamilton Diary 17 Aug. (1972) II. 672 A very hot walk. We got ‘lifted’ back in a carriage; and afterwards played lawn tennis. 1954 M. Sharp Gipsy in Parlour xxii. 211 Up she drove, lifted by Mr Simnel the chemist, Taunton-bound. 1959 I. Jefferies Thirteen Days vii. 87 He'd like to lift me back to Richon fairly soon as the roads were likely to tighten up during the day. 1960 Sunday Express 13 Nov. 14/5 A young R.A.F. hitch⁓hiker I ‘lifted’ from Shepherd's Bush to High Wycombe. 1965 I. Fleming Man with Golden Gun vi. 90 Get in the back. Lift you down to your car. 1971 M. Russell Deadline ii. 22 Can you lift me in your wagon, Wally? |
f. Artillery.
trans. and intr. To increase the range of fire from that being used at a given point in an attack.
| 1916 in A. Farrar-Hockley Somme (1964) iii. 94 Avoid a pause at 0000, at minus three in each field battery, where one section will lift on to the support line. 1917 J. Masefield Old Front Line ii. 30 The flash of our shells, breaking a little further off as the gunners ‘lifted’. 1922 Encycl. Brit. XXX. 255/2 The bombardment is ‘lifted’ from the first line to reinforce that on the second line. 1962 Ordnance Technical Terminol. (U.S. Army Ordnance School) (AD 660 112) 176/2 Lift fire, to advance the range of fire by elevating the muzzle of a weapon. 1964 A. Farrar-Hockley Somme iii. 96 The 18-pounders lifted on time as they passed the wire. Ibid. 98 Some aghast to see the supporting artillery fire already lifting ahead of them. |
g. Of a sheepdog: to establish control over a flock of sheep.
Cf. lift n.2 5 i.
| 1921 Kelso Chron. 12 Aug. 2 This bitch started well... Her haulding, lifting, and penning were good, her bringing and driving very fair. 1942 R. B. Kelley Animal Breeding xiii. 127 When he [sc. a pup] has reached this point sit him down and make him lift the flock quietly. 1946 F. D. Davison Dusty ix. 90 The paddock, what with hills, broken ground and patches of scrub, was not the easiest in the world to lift sheep from. 1949 C. W. G. Hartley Shepherd's Dogs v. 33 Much will depend upon the manner in which the sheep are ‘lifted’. |
h. To arrest, take into custody.
| 1923 G. Watson Roxburghshire Word-Bk. 200 Tam's gruppen an' liftit. 1934 D. Allan Hunger March iii. ii. 208 They've lifted Smith. 1968 ‘J. Ross’ Diminished by Death ii. 27 The youth stood. ‘Am I being lifted?’ ‘Not at the moment. You are helping us with our inquiries.’ 1972 Times 24 Jan. 2/1 If you have a father who is lifted, he has sons and cousins who will take his place. 1973 ‘J. Patrick’ Glasgow Gang Observed iii. 32 A fund..to raise ten pounds bail money for two of their number who had been ‘lifted’ the night before for fighting. |
i. To evacuate (soldiers) from a beach; to air-lift. Also
transf. Cf. lift n.2 5 h.
| 1941 J. Masefield Nine Days Wonder 19 The first men lifted were not always soldiers. 1963 Times 24 Jan. 10/3 An emergency rail freighter service ordered by Lord Robens, chairman of the National Coal Board, is lifting thousands of tons of coal into the worst snowbound areas of south-east and south-west England. 1972 Daily Tel. 11 Apr. 17 Medical supplies, tents and food were being lifted in by helicopter last night. |
12. a. To take up out of the ground (
Sc. in general sense);
Hort. to dig up (potatoes, bulbs, etc.). Also
occas. intr., in
phr. to lift well, of the crops or plants concerned: to produce a good yield or be in good condition when lifted.
| 1844 Stephens Bk. Farm III. 1125 When lifted for shipment to the London market, they [potatoes] are first riddled into sizes, then [etc.]. 1883 J. Purves in Contemp. Rev. Sept. 354 The tall, strong farm-women ‘lifting’ the potatoes. 1883 Stevenson Treas. Isl. i. i, There is still treasure not yet lifted. 1888 L. Castle Flower Gardening 232 November... Lift Gladioli corms, storing them in a dry place; also Dahlia tubers. 1888 Hardy Wessex Tales II. 67 The next day went about his swede-lifting and storing. 1891 ‘H. Haliburton’ Ochil Idylls 106 The dreels [of potatoes] are to lift, An' the neeps are to pu'. 1892 E. Reeves Homeward Bound 334 She had come over to Paris to lift his remains and remove them to another place. 1892 E. P. Dixon Seed Catalogue 25 Fifty⁓fold [potato]..which may be lifted July and August. 1931 Morning Post 19 July 5/1 What to do with the bulbs at this season when, apparently, they are sleeping, has for long been a rather controversial point. Should they be left or lifted? 1959 Times 7 Sept. 19/2 Some crops [of potatoes] in Lincolnshire are lifting well, others are below average. 1971 ‘L. Black’ Death has Green Fingers vii. 83 Suppose whoever it was had lifted the roses already. 1973 Times 20 Oct. 14/6 Nurseries..cannot lift and pack all their orders in a month. |
b. Sc. To carry (a crop), clear (a cornfield).
| 1876 A. Laing Lindores Abbey xxiv. 309 He went and searched the ground after the crop was lifted. 1883 [see lifted ppl. a.]. |
13. To hit (the ball) into the air;
esp. in
Cricket: often with the bowler as object.
| 1874 Times 5 Oct. 11/2 When the [golf] ball must be ‘skied’, or lifted over some swell of the ground. 1882 Daily Tel. 24 June, W. G. lifted Spofforth round to the leg boundary. 1894 N. Gale Cricket Songs 31 He lifts you o'er the Baths for six. 1897 Daily News 16 June 3/4 Hill, as is his custom, lifted the ball a good deal. |
14. Comb.:
Liftback, the name of a type of hatchback car manufactured by the Toyota motor corporation;
occas. (with small initial) applied to other makes of car,
= hatchback s.v. hatch n.1 9;
† lift-leg, a name for strong ale;
lift-on,
lift-off, used
esp. attrib., a method of hoisting containers from one vessel or vehicle to another; also
lift-on attrib.;
lift-out attrib., made to lift out;
lift-up attrib., made to lift up.
| 1973 Motor 5 May 42/3 Toyota have launched two new models in Japan. One is..a 2-litre fastback with opening tailgate... The 2-litre car is an addition to the Celica range and is called The Liftback. 1977 Belfast Tel. 17 Jan. 14/6 (Advt.), Kadett City. A stylish Lift Back that combines good passenger accommodation along with economical and practical motoring. 1979 Arizona Daily Star 1 Apr. (Advt. Section) 6/7 Chevette—liftback—economy 4 cylinder with auto. trans. 1985 Daily Tel. 26 June 13 (Advt.), The Celica is one of two models (you can also have a liftback). |
| 1587 Harrison England ii. xviii. (1877) i. 295 There is such headie ale and beere in most of them, as..is commonlie called huffecap,..stride wide, and lift leg. |
| 1956 Sun (Baltimore) 16 Oct. 18/3 The relative merits of ‘roll-on, roll-off’ shipping, where trailers would be rolled aboard, and of ‘lift-on, lift-off’ service involving only a truck van. 1967 Freight Management Jan. 15/1 (Advt.), Last year Southampton handled thousands of containers by lift-on/lift-off. Ibid. 46/3 Basically roll-on is more expensive than lift-on. Ibid. 47/3 (caption) The tanks..can be used on both roll-on or lift-on vessels. 1968 Economist 14 Sept. p. xxxiv/1 The North Sea is now the focal point of a fight between two new forms of transport, the roll-on, roll-off ferry services..and lift-on, lift-off container services. 1969 Jane's Freight Containers 1968–69 73 (caption) Simultaneous roll-on and lift-on of trailers make possible a trip a week to Puerto Rico. Ibid. 160/3 Lift-on Lift-off Unitised Loads. |
| 1926–7 Army & Navy Stores Catal. 314/2 These boilers are..fitted with a shaking grating and lift-out ashes pan. 1968 Harrods Christmas Catal. 3/4 Beauty case with inside pockets and lift-out tray. 1974 Country Life 14 Mar. (Suppl.) 41/1 Arm Chair with lift out seat covered in green velvet. |
| 1917 Installation News Jan. 5/1 The Cabinets comprise a substantially constructed stained box, fitted with lift-up lid, lock and key. 1950 N.Z. Jrnl. Agric. Aug. 132/1 The lift-up gate opens by sliding up between guides fixed to uprights. 1956 Railway Mag. Feb. 121/1 There is a separate sheet steel case with lift-up cover containing the engineman's telephone. 1970 Guardian 19 Nov. 11/6 Two swing-out drawers, one with a lift-up mirror. |
Add:
[3.] [a.] (
iv) To be or become visible above or against the surrounding landscape. Now
rare or
poet.| [1590 Spenser F.Q. ii. ix. 45 That Turrets frame most admirable was..And lifted high aboue this earthly masse, Which it suruewd, as hils doen lower ground.] 1912 Belloc This & That 125 The chestnuts made a dark belt from which the tall graces of the birches lifted. 1930 W. Faulkner As I lay Dying 221 Against the sky ahead the massed telephone lines run, and the clock on the courthouse lifts among the trees. |
8. b. transf. To take and use in one's writing (another person's words, subject, idea, etc.). Also
absol.| 1885 Spectator 10 Jan. 51/2 In painting-in his background, he is, therefore, reasonably entitled to ‘lift’ his materials wherever he finds them. 1892 Nation (N.Y.) 15 Dec. 456/3 All that is vitally concerned with Lincoln, is lifted bodily from Herndon's book. 1921 G. B. Shaw Back to Methuselah Pref. p. viii, The surest way to produce an effect of..originality was..to lift characters bodily out of the pages of Charles Dickens. 1951 E. B. White Let. ?Oct. (1976) 342 Here's a college president lifting from another college president, for his maiden speech. 1963 L. MacNeice Varieties of Parable (1965) iii. 67 Coleridge had lifted some tricks from Percy's Reliques but it does not read like pastiche or parody. 1979 C. James At Pillars of Hercules i. ii. 47 The lines about Leonidas are lifted straight from the Imitations version of Rilke's ‘Die Tauben’. 1986 Listener 4 Dec. 25/1 Life is Elsewhere, a title Kundera lifts from the end of André Breton's first Surrealist manifesto. |
c. Sport. To win, to carry off (a trophy or title).
| 1901 Outing (U.S.) June 320/1 Another challenge has now been received from them..and a second attempt to ‘lift’ the Davis Cup will be made this season. 1940 N. Monks Squadrons Up! vi. 162 The boys were certainly proud of their aircraft, but they made up their minds to lift that gold cup for the crazy-flying event, and their two crack flyers went into training. 1969 Femina (Bombay) 26 Dec. 45/1 The versatile collegians of Bombay lifted the Inter-Varsity table tennis, kabaddi and swimming titles. 1977 Belfast Tel. 28 Feb. 20/1 Wolves, bidding to become the third Second Division side in five years to lift the FA cup. 1991 Highways & Transportation Sept. 24/3 Extremely heavy showers did not deter the golfers and especially Neil Balmer who lifted the trophy with an excellent score of 40 points. |
[11.] j. U.S. Criminol. To take up an impression of (a fingerprint or fingerprints) from an object,
usu. by means of adhesive tape.
| 1931 H. Battley Single Finger Prints vi. 75 Latent impressions may be transferred or lifted after development by means of Folien,..a dark surface to which an adhesive preparation has been applied. 1942 B. C. Bridges Pract. Fingerprinting xiii. 257 Despite its usefulness in lifting latents, Scotch tape..has some disadvantages. 1951 W. R. Scott Fingerprint Mechanics 182 Prints in some cases can be lifted more than once. 1978 S. Brill Teamsters vi. 225 They were able to lift a fingerprint off the title. 1986 Jrnl. (Fairfax County, Va.) 28 May a3/2 Arlington County police have talked to witnesses and lifted fingerprints from the stolen convertible. |
▪ IV. † lift, ppl. a. Obs. [pa. pple. of lift v.] = lifted ppl. a. Also with
up.
| 1413 Pilgr. Sowle (Caxton 1483) iv. xxxii. 81 Ne neither of them shalle be the lift hand to mayntenaunce of wrong. 1617 A. Newman Pleas. Vis. 18 Then seem'd his lookes, and lift-vp hands to say, ‘Take heed by me’. 1679 ‘T. Ticklefoot’ Trial Wakeman 7 He replyed with lift up hands, God forbid..that [etc.]. 1724 M. Davys Reformed Coquet 163 With lift-up Hands..imploring help. |