More commonly confused words

Raze/ raise

The verb raze means to destroy completely. It is usually employed to describe how a building or village that once existed was totally demolished. After something is razed, it no longer exists. The word originates from an Old French term meaning to shave closely, since when a building is razed, the ground is shaved closely of its presence. That is the origin of the noun razor, something that shaves. The familiar verb raise refers to lifting or moving something to a higher level or position. As a verb, raise can also mean to increase the amount or strength of something. Students of linguistics know that the verb raise is used in transformational grammar, meaning to move a noun phrase out of a subordinate clause and into a main clause under certain conditions. In the TU Faculty of Mathmetatics, to raise refers to multiplying a quantity by itself to a specified power, such as the formula

Three raised to the seventh power equals 2,187.

In films or on television at poker tournaments, we may hear enthusiastic gamblers at card games card that they are willing to wager a certain amount more than what another player has already bet. They declare:

I will raise you one thousand dollars.

The verb raise does not originate with the Old French language. Instead, it is from Old Norse, from a term meaning to move or travel. This captures the sense of moving our hand, if we raise a hand. Getting the spellings right of raise and raze is especially important, since one word means to increase something, while the other means to destroy it. Raise is a common word we often see, while raze is used less often. Even so, in Thai English some writers choose the spelling raze when it should be raise. One way to remind ourselves of the different meanings of the words might be to look at the letter z in the middle of the word raze and imagine a building falling over, folding, or crumbling. While if we look at the middle letter i in the word raise, we can imagine a building that is being built higher. If we keep these little stories in mind, we are less likely to confuse the two terms. We may also invent short sentences using the words, to help us to remember to keep them apart:

Our students were not raised to raze buildings.  

The estimated number of razed villages has been raised.

The ecologists raised an objection about the razed forest areas.

Some more usage examples:

• Hundreds of Rohingya villages have been razed and the debris bulldozed into oblivion.
• Myanmar erects security structures atop burned Rohingya land: Amnesty. Myanmar is building security installations on top of razed Rohingya villages, Amnesty International said Monday, casting doubt on the country’s plans to repatriate hundreds of thousands of refugees.
• A fire razed 22 wooden houses in a squatter community in Bangkok’s Lat Krabang district late Sunday night.
• The Supreme Court was set to rule on the case of a notorious raid in which roadside beer bars were razed in downtown Bangkok in January 2003.
• 37 structures in Tablan National Park to be razed. Tablan National Park officials will start dismantling 37 resorts and vacation homes encroaching on its territory on Monday. “We will bring down the illegal structures,” the park’s chief, Tewin Meesap, said yesterday.
• The Civil Court has ordered the demolition of 64 resorts and vacation homes in Tablan National Park. However, some owners have appealed the order to the Administrative Court, saying they have documents to prove that their structures are authorised.
• Officials raze illegal plantations in Krabi, raiding a plantation in Krabi to demolish rubber, durian and stink bean trees which are aged around seven to ten years. Nearly 100 officials attended the raid to assist in the razing of the illegal crops. The Chief claims that more than 2,000 trees were encroaching on more than 40 rais of land in the Ao Nang area.
• The largest Muslim area in the Burmese city of Sittwe was razed to the ground in recent communal clashes, a UK broadcaster says after visiting the area.
• South Korea ready to raze Pyongyang in case of nuke attack. SEOUL – South Korea has prepared a preemptive strike plan to obliterate the North Korean capital Pyongyang through intensive bombing in case the North Korean government attacks.
• Next up on the historical roster of notable Muay Thai fighters is Nai Kanom Thom who later became known as the father of Muay Thai. In 1767 the Burmese took prisoner Nai Kanom Thom, a commoner, when they razed the city of Ayutthaya.
• Sports and service – all with a Smile. Thai Smile is celebrating the success of its sports marketing campaign by supporting Ratchaburi Mitr Phol football club for the second year to raise brand awareness among a new target group.
• Scg Raises Stake in Vn Petrochemical Project. Siam Cement Group (SCG) has increased its holding in Long Son Petrochemical Co Ltd (LSP) from 71 per cent to 100 per cent, which will be the first petrochemicals complex in Vietnam, the company’s president and CEO Roongrote Rangsiyopash said in a press release yesterday.
• WB raises Thai growth forecast to 4.1 per cent. The World Bank (WB) has revised up Thailand’s economy growth this year to 4.1 per cent from its previous estimate of 3.6 per cent given the country’s robust performance.
• North Korea ‘military reshuffle’ raises eyebrows in Seoul. South Korea is monitoring developments in the North’s armed forces, it said Monday after reports Pyongyang replaced three of its top military officials ahead of a summit with the United States.
• SenseTime AI start-up raises funds to expand global presence. China’s facial recognition start-up SenseTime announced on Thursday that it has raised US$620 million (Bt20 million) in its Series C plus round of fundraising, which will accelerate its expansion overseas.
• Driver missing as lorry fuel leak raises explosion fears. Petrol and LPG from a lorry’s fuel tanks was dangerously leaking on Sunday after it overturned on a road in Chon Buri’s Muang district, leading officials to fear an explosion would occur at the scene.
• An egg a day may keep the doctor away, study claims. For decades, experts warned that eating eggs raises levels of unhealthy cholesterol. But a study Tuesday said an egg a day may actually reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke.
• Ratchanok raises bar as Thailand trounces Germany in cup opener. Thailand’s Uber Cup team lived up to expectations, outclassing Germany 5-0 in their Group B opening round-robin tie at the Impact Arena Muang Thong Thani on Sunday.
• Blind cyclists raise funds for vocational centre. A group of blind people will make an 867-kilometre bicycle ride from Bangkok to Chiang Mai late this month to raise funds for an Asean vocational centre in the northern province.
• BMA campaign to raise awareness on dengue. Amid fears of more cases of dengue fever in the upcoming wet season, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) is set to launch a campaign to raise public awareness of this Aedes mosquito-borne disease in various communities.
• Consumer rights groups oppose BTS fare hike. Consumer networks have demanded that Bangkok Governor Aswin Kwanmuang put the brakes on plans by the BTS Skytrain to raise fares starting on October 1.
• Raise a glass to Songkran. Starbucks is already in the festive spirit. With Thais beginning of the best spot to get involved in a water fight – or planning a holiday to get away from water fights – Starbucks is counting down to the Songkran Festival with an edition of colourful drinkware.
• Just raise your hand and smile. Despite its low price, the Huawei Y9 2018 comes with a double dose of dual cameras. A new and very reasonably priced smartphone with a dual-camera setup for both rear and front cameras for perfect bokeh effects, the Huawei Y9 2018 boasts a 5.93-inch Full-View display in 18:9 ratio and high resolution of 2,160×1080 pixels.
• EC members to raise objections with NLA on two points in new organic bill. The Election Commission (EC) resolved yesterday to petition the National Legislative Assembly (NLA), raising objections over the new EC bill it has passed, expressing disagreement on at least two points.

(All images courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)