Raise the bar

'Raising the bar' is a way of increasing the standards of something. If you 'raise the bar', you set a target for performance.

Examples

• Congratulations! This month's performance has really raised the bar for your colleagues. They'll need to work harder now!
• The company is performing so well that it has raised the bar for the industry. We are leaders in our field.

Raise the roof

The collocation 'raise the roof' relates to celebrating or having a party, or getting a wonderful response from a crowd. It's about making lots of noise.

Examples

• The politician really raised the roof with his rousing speech. The cheering and applause were deafening.
• Okay, everyone. I want to hear you scream! Let's raise the roof and party all night!

Raise doubts

When we 'raise doubts', we introduce the idea that things might go wrong. You might raise doubts about a project during a meeting, for example, if you think it's not going well.

Examples

• The fault in the system has really raised doubts about the viability of the software.
• I stood up and said, "I have some doubts I'd like to raise at this point."

Raise hell

'Raising hell' is causing chaos or trouble. It's sometimes used ironically to talk about having lots of fun.

Examples

• The cousins hadn't played together for weeks. We got a bouncy castle and they really raised hell, running and jumping and screaming. It was chaos!
• The city was filled with rioters, smashing up shops and looting - just generally raising hell and destroying everything in sight.

Raise fears

When we 'raise fears', we make it clear that there is something we are afraid of or worried about.

Examples

• The attack on the local mosque raised fears of future reprisals. Everyone was so angry!
• In the meeting, I raised my fears regarding the new product, as I thought it could be harmful to children.

Raise the alarm

If you 'raise the alarm', you warn people about a dangerous situation or report it to the relevant authority.

Examples

• Julie was attacked as she walked home last night, but managed to break free and run into a shop to raise the alarm. 
• The team of scientists had been raising the alarm over climate change for years, but no one listened.
• It was 20 minutes before somebody noticed the fire in the warehouse and raised the alarm.

These are some of the collocations you can make with 'raise'. Can you think of any others?