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"to lift" in seven languages

Meaningto lift

Spanish

levantar

/lebanˈtaɾ/

other source · Spanish levante, present participle of LEVĀRE 'to raise'

French

soulever

/sulve/

inherited

Italian

sollevare

/solleˈvare/

inherited

Portuguese

levantar

/levɐ̃ˈtah/

other source · Portuguese levante, present participle of LEVĀRE 'to raise'

Romanian

ridica

/ridiˈka/

other source · of uncertain origin

Catalan

aixecar

/əʃəˈka/

other source · of uncertain origin

English

lift

/lɪft/

other source · Old Norse lypta

English → Italianto liftsollevareNot relatedDifferent sources — learn this one fresh. But English has relatives: elevate, elevator, lever, relieve, levity.What English and Italian share

The Latin ancestor

SUBLEVĀRE‘to lift up from below (SUB + LEVĀRE)’

All six sisters descend from it, unless marked otherwise below.

The story

LEVĀRE 'to make light, to raise' runs through all three: French and Italian kept the prefixed SUBLEVĀRE, Spanish built levantar on the participle levante. English lift is Norse, but elevator and lever are the Latin family.

English relatives: elevate, elevator, lever, relieve, levity

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In a sentence

  • es¿Me ayudas a levantar esta caja?
  • frTu peux m'aider à soulever ce carton ?
  • itMi aiuti a sollevare questa scatola?
  • ptVocê me ajuda a levantar esta caixa?
  • roMă ajuți să ridic cutia asta?
  • caEm pots ajudar a aixecar aquesta caixa?
  • enCan you help me lift this box?

More in Core verbs

All Core verbs words