Etymology

elevate

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Today it means: To raise (something) to a higher position. Full definition →

Middle English elevaten ← Latin ēlevātus ← Proto-Italic *leɣʷis
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elevate · verb1

  1. Proto-Indo-European*h₁éǵʰ
  2. Proto-Indo-European*h₁éǵʰs
  3. Proto-Italic*eks
  4. Latinex
  5. Latinex-
  6. Proto-Indo-European*h₁lengʷʰ-
  7. Proto-Indo-European*h₁léngʰus
  8. Proto-Italic*breɣʷisinflu.
  9. Proto-Italic*leɣʷis
  10. Latinlevis
  11. Latinlevō
  12. Latinēlevō
  13. Latinēlevātus
  14. Middle Englishelevat
  15. Middle Englishelevaten
  16. English todayelevate

From Middle English elevaten (“to raise up, erect; to elate, inflate (e.g. with pride); (alchemy) to vaporize; (of a bone, excressence, blood vessel) to protrude”), from elevat(e) (“(in physical elevation, in rank, in altitude above the horizon) high”, also used as the past participle of elevaten) + -en (verb-forming suffix), further from Latin ēlevātus, the perfect passive participle of ēlevō (“to raise, lift up”), from ē- (“out”) + levō (“to make light, to lift”), from levis (“light”) + -ō (verb-forming suffix); see levity and lever.

elevate · adjective2

  1. Middle English · inherited fromelevat(e)“(in physical elevation, in rank, in altitude above the horizon) high”
  2. English todayelevate

From Middle English elevat(e) (“(in physical elevation, in rank, in altitude above the horizon) high”, also used as the past participle of elevaten), see -ate (adjective-forming suffix) and Etymology 1 for more. Cognate with French élevé.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.