elevation
/ˌɛlɪˈveɪʃ(ə)n
/noun
1 [mass noun] The action or fact of raising or being raised to a higher or more important level, state, or position: her sudden elevation to the cabinet...
- However, since I had no part in organising the petition I am totally mystified by my sudden elevation to the position of spokesman for the petitioners.
- The pair owe their early elevation to the fact that they are playing first-team football while older rivals are not.
- Despite the hue and cry raised in the mid-1990s and the subsequent elevation to powerful positions of some of the keenest critics, the number of suspensions is rising rapidly.
Synonyms
promotion, upgrading, advancement, advance, preferment, aggrandizement, move up, step up;
ennoblement
informal step up the ladder, kick upstairs, leg-up
1.1Increase in the level of something: diabetics have been found to have more pronounced elevation of systolic blood pressure...
- The elevation in systolic pressure increases left ventricular work and the risk of left ventricular hypertrophy, whereas the decrease in diastolic blood pressure may compromise coronary blood flow.
- After adjusting for the current blood pressure, earlier antecedent blood pressure elevation further increased stroke risk.
- We found that, as predicted, testosterone elevation increased dominance rank in captive males.
1.2The raising of the consecrated elements for adoration at Mass: a prayer recommended for lay people at the elevation of the Host...
- Joos van Ghent, however, does not depict the moment of elevation found in images of the Corpus Domini mass because elevation in the case of the Communion of the Apostles was not necessary.
- Did the Queen remain present throughout the Mass or did she withdraw to her traverse - or private closet in St. Edward's chapel - at the crucial point of the consecration and elevation of the Host?
- And it is only on Christmas Day, when she withdraws from the Chapel Royal at the moment of the elevation of the Mass, that she makes her religious preferences plain.
1.3 Ballet The ability of a dancer to attain height in jumps.I know that he is splendid dancer with heaps of elevation; it is a long wait until Act III when he can show it off....
- Her famous technique is secure but she has little elevation in her jumps.
- A dancer gifted with unusual elevation and dramatic intensity she projected a challenging independence on stage.
2 [mass noun] Height above a given level, especially sea level: the area has a topography that ranges from 1,500 to 3,000 metres in elevation...
- The river was also notoriously sluggish, largely because the entire twenty-mile river drops less than twenty feet in elevation from Dover to sea level at the Delaware Bay.
- The difference in elevation provides climatic diversity.
- Most strike to the northeast and vary in elevation from 1,000 to 1,500 meters above sea level.
Synonyms
altitude, height, distance above the sea/ground;
loftiness
2.1 [count noun] A high place or position: an elevation of 300 metres...
- The warriors suffered no discernible casualties and managed to take up positions on a small elevation only a few hundred yards to the south of E Company.
- Not surprisingly, the relationships were the opposite with elevation, as higher dune elevations result in greater distances between the soil surface and the water table.
- Alpine, or plateau, permafrost is found at high elevations in mountain regions throughout the world.
Synonyms
height, hill, mound, mountain, mount, eminence, rise;
high ground, raised ground, rising ground
formal acclivity
2.2The angle of something with the horizontal, especially of a gun or of the direction of a celestial object: as every gunner knows, increasing the elevation beyond five degrees can be a risky business...
- These patterns depend on the direction (azimuth and elevation angle) of the observations carried out during the calibration.
- They were driving north when they witnessed a peculiar object directly ahead of them at an angle of elevation of 75 degrees.
- This is the effective wireless foot print at a 5 to 90 degree angle of elevation.
3A particular side of a building: a burglar alarm was displayed on the front elevation...
- The structure is reinforced concrete, with bare floors and ceilings, its roof and front elevations dressed in corrugated stainless-steel panels and dark-gray-tinted windows framed in aluminum.
- Whilst the finish to the front and side elevations are an acceptable standard, problems similar to those experienced at Cable & Wireless are evident.
- The front and rear elevations consisted of factory-made units of timber construction containing windows and doors, etc - cladded with a plastic coated shiplap - after the units were slipped into the concrete openings.
Synonyms
side, face, facade, aspect
3.1A scale drawing showing the vertical projection of one side of a building. Compare with plan (sense 3 of the noun).Blach says the firm began generating 2D plans, elevations, and section drawings very early in the design process....
- Such plans should include meticulous scale renderings known as elevations.
- The goal is to explore digital presentation as a creator of meaning that goes beyond the traditional use of plan, elevation, or perspective.
Derivatives
elevational
- The proposal seeks to convert the building by using its existing shell, with elevational alterations, but no significant change to the building itself.
- In Australia, elevational differences among sites are slight, but habitat barriers and their efficacy over evolutionary time scales would presumably be of primary importance.
- Oddly, within a more localized geographic area over an elevational gradient, sagebrush lizards tend to be of similar adult size, even though seasonal activity varies among locations.
Origin
Late Middle English: from Latin elevatio(n-), from elevare 'raise' (see elevate).