To Raise Something, To Lift
Transitive verb and Ichidan verb
あげる
このはこをれいぞうこの上に上げてください。
Please put this box on top of the refrigerator for me.
三センチ上げてください。
Please lift it three centimeters.
りょうてを上に上げて、大きくおならをした。
I raised my hands and let out a huge fart.
This word consists of kanji with hiragana attached. Because the hiragana ends with an う sound, you know this word is a verb. The kanji itself means above so the verb version of that is when you put something above you. It's to raise something.
This is a transitive verb. That means it takes a direct object. You raise something. Like your hands!
Since this word has okurigana (hiragana attached to the kanji) you know that it's probably going to use the kun'yomi reading, which you didn't learn with the kanji. Here's a mnemonic to help you:
You want to raise an aardvark (あ) above your head. Why? Because even though aardvarks have long tongues, it can't reach the ants in the trees. But when you raise the aardvark it can get at those yummy ants!