I. USED WITH NOUNS DESCRIBING ACTIONS
(~s, taking, took, ~n)
Frequency: The word is one of the 700 most common words in English.
Note: 'Take' is used in combination with a wide range of nouns, where the meaning of the combination is mostly given by the noun. Many of these combinations are common idiomatic expressions whose meanings can be found at the appropriate nouns. For example, the expression '~ care' is explained at 'care'.
1.
You can use ~ followed by a noun to talk about an action or event, when it would also be possible to use the verb that is related to that noun. For example, you can say ‘she took a shower’ instead of ‘she showered’.
Betty took a photograph of us...
I’ve never ~n a holiday since starting this job...
There’s not enough people willing to ~ the risk...
VERB: V n, V n, V n
2.
In ordinary spoken or written English, people use ~ with a range of nouns instead of using a more specific verb. For example people often say ‘he took control’ or ‘she took a positive attitude’ instead of ‘he assumed control’ or ‘she adopted a positive attitude’.
The Patriotic Front took power after a three-month civil war...
I felt it was important for women to join and ~ a leading role...
VERB: V n, V n
II. OTHER USES
(~s, taking, took, ~n)
Frequency: The word is one of the 700 most common words in English.
Please look at category 46 to see if the expression you are looking for is shown under another headword.
1.
If you ~ something, you reach out for it and hold it.
Here, let me ~ your coat...
Colette took her by the shoulders and shook her...
She took her in her arms and tried to comfort her.
VERB: V n, V n by n, V n prep
2.
If you ~ something with you when you go somewhere, you carry it or have it with you.
Mark often took his books to Bess’s house to study...
You should ~ your passport with you when changing money...
Don’t forget to ~ your camera.
VERB: V n prep/adv, V n with n, V n
3.
If a person, vehicle, or path ~s someone somewhere, they transport or lead them there.
The school bus ~s them to school and brings them back...
VERB: V n prep/adv
4.
If something such as a job or interest ~s you to a place, it is the reason for you going there.
He was a poor student from Madras whose genius took him to Cambridge...
VERB: V n prep/adv
5.
If you ~ something such as your problems or your business to someone, you go to that person when you have problems you want to discuss or things you want to buy.
You need to ~ your problems to a trained counsellor...
VERB: V n prep/adv
6.
If one thing ~s another to a particular level, condition, or state, it causes it to reach that level or condition.
Her latest research ~s her point further.
VERB: V n prep/adv
7.
If you ~ something from a place, you remove it from there.
He took a handkerchief from his pocket and lightly wiped his mouth...
Opening a drawer, she took out a letter.
VERB: V n with prep/adv, V n with prep/adv
8.
If you ~ something from someone who owns it, you steal it or go away with it without their permission.
He has ~n my money, and I have no chance of getting it back...
VERB: V n
9.
If an army or political party ~s something or someone, they win them from their enemy or opponent.
Marines went in, taking 15 prisoners...
VERB: V n
10.
If you ~ one number or amount from another, you subtract it or deduct it.
Take off the price of the house, that’s another hundred thousand.
VERB: V n with adv/prep
11.
If you cannot ~ something difficult, painful, or annoying, you cannot tolerate it without becoming upset, ill, or angry.
Don’t ever ask me to look after those kids again. I just can’t ~ it!...
= stand, bear
VERB: no passive, usu with brd-neg, V n
12.
If you ~ something such as damage or loss, you suffer it, especially in war or in a battle.
They have ~n heavy casualties.
VERB: V n
13.
If something ~s a certain amount of time, that amount of time is needed in order to do it.
Since the roads are very bad, the journey took us a long time...
I had heard an appeal could ~ years...
The sauce ~s 25 minutes to prepare and cook...
The game took her less than an hour to finish...
You must beware of those traps–you could ~ all day getting out of them...
It ~s 15 minutes to convert the plane into a car by removing the wings and the tail...
It had ~n Masters about twenty hours to reach the house...
It took thirty-five seconds for the hour to strike.
VERB: no passive, V n n, V n, V n to-inf, V n n to-inf, V n -ing, it V n to-inf, it V n n to-inf, it V n for n to-inf
14.
If something ~s a particular quality or thing, that quality or thing is needed in order to do it.
At one time, walking across the room took all her strength...
It ~s courage to say what you think...
It ~s a pretty bad level of performance before the teachers will criticize the students.
= need
VERB: no passive, V n, it V n to-inf, it V n before cl
15.
If you ~ something that is given or offered to you, you agree to accept it.
His sons took his advice.
= accept
VERB: V n
16.
If you ~ a feeling such as pleasure, pride, or delight in a particular thing or activity, the thing or activity gives you that feeling.
They ~ great pride in their heritage...
The government will ~ comfort from the latest opinion poll.
= derive
VERB: V n in n/-ing, V n from n/-ing
17.
If a shop, restaurant, theatre, or other business ~s a certain amount of money, they get that amount from people buying goods or services. (mainly BRIT BUSINESS; in AM, usually use ~ in )
The firm took ?100,000 in bookings.
VERB: V amount
18.
You can use ~ to refer to the amount of money that a business such as a store or theatre gets from selling its goods or tickets during a particular period. (mainly AM BUSINESS; in BRIT, usually use takings )
It added another $11.8 million to the ~, for a grand total of $43 million.
N-SING: usu the N
19.
If you ~ a prize or medal, you win it.
‘Poison’ took first prize at the 1991 Sundance Film Festival...
VERB: V n
20.
If you ~ the blame, responsibility, or credit for something, you agree to accept it.
His brother Raoul did it, but Leonel took the blame and kept his mouth shut...
= accept
VERB: V n
21.
If you ~ patients or clients, you accept them as your patients or clients.
Some universities would be forced to ~ more students than they wanted...
VERB: V n
22.
If you ~ a telephone call, you speak to someone who is telephoning you.
Douglas telephoned Catherine at her office. She refused to ~ his calls.
VERB: V n
23.
If you ~ something in a particular way, you react in the way mentioned to a situation or to someone’s beliefs or behaviour.
Unfortunately, no one took my messages seriously...
VERB: V n adv/prep
24.
You use ~ when you are discussing or explaining a particular question, in order to introduce an example or to say how the question is being considered.
There’s confusion and resentment, and it’s almost never expressed out in the open. Take this office, for example...
= consider
VERB: usu imper, V n
25.
If you ~ someone’s meaning or point, you understand and accept what they are saying.
They’ve turned sensible, if you ~ my meaning...
VERB: V n
26.
If you ~ someone for something, you believe wrongly that they are that thing.
She had ~n him for a journalist...
I naturally took him to be the owner of the estate.
VERB: V n for n, V n to-inf
27.
If you ~ something from among a number of things, you choose to have or buy it.
‘I’ll ~ the grilled tuna,’ Mary Ann told the waiter.
VERB: V n
28.
If you ~ a road or route, you choose to travel along it.
From Wrexham centre ~ the Chester Road to the outskirts of town...
The road forked in two directions. He had obviously ~n the wrong fork.
VERB: V n prep/adv, V n
29.
If you ~ a car, train, bus, or plane, you use it to go from one place to another.
It’s the other end of the High Street. We’ll ~ the car, shall we?...
She took the train to New York every weekend...
VERB: V n, V n prep/adv
30.
If you ~ a subject or course at school or university, you choose to study it.
Students are allowed to ~ European history and American history.
VERB: V n
31.
If you ~ a test or examination, you do it in order to obtain a qualification.
She took her driving test in Greenford...
VERB: V n
32.
If you ~ someone for a subject, you give them lessons in that subject. (mainly BRIT)
The teacher who took us for economics was Miss Humphrey.
= teach
VERB: V n for n
33.
If someone ~s drugs, pills, or other medicines, they ~ them into their body, for example by swallowing them.
She’s been taking sleeping pills...
VERB: V n
34.
If you ~ a note or a letter, you write down something you want to remember or the words that someone says.
She sat expressionless, carefully taking notes...
VERB: V n
35.
If you ~ a particular measurement, you use special equipment to find out what something measures.
If he feels hotter than normal, ~ his temperature.
VERB: V n
36.
If a place or container ~s a particular amount or number, there is enough space for that amount or number.
The place could just about ~ 2,000 people.
VERB: no passive, V amount
37.
If you ~ a particular size in shoes or clothes, that size fits you.
47 per cent of women in the UK ~ a size 16 or above.
VERB: V n
38.
A ~ is a short piece of action which is filmed in one continuous process for a cinema or television film.
She couldn’t get it right–she never knew the lines and we had to do several ~s.
N-COUNT
39.
Someone’s ~ on a particular situation or fact is their attitude to it or their interpretation of it.
What’s your ~ on the new government? Do you think it can work?...
= perspective
N-SING: N on n, usu supp N
40.
You can say ‘I ~ it’ to check with someone that what you believe to be the case or what you understand them to mean is in fact the case, or is in fact what they mean.
I ~ it you’re a friend of the Kellings, Mr Burr...
= I presume
PHRASE: PHR with cl, oft PHR that
41.
You can say ‘~ it from me’ to tell someone that you are absolutely sure that what you are saying is correct, and that they should believe you.
Take it from me–this is the greatest achievement by any Formula One driver ever.
= believe me
PHRASE: PHR with cl
42.
If you say to someone ‘~ it or leave it’, you are telling them that they can accept something or not accept it, but that you are not prepared to discuss any other alternatives.
A 72-hour week, 12 hours a day, six days a week, ~ it or leave it.
CONVENTION
43.
If someone ~s an insult or attack lying down, they accept it without protesting.
The government is not taking such criticism lying down.
PHRASE: ~ inflects
44.
If something ~s a lot out of you or ~s it out of you, it requires a lot of energy or effort and makes you feel very tired and weak afterwards.
He looked tired, as if the argument had ~n a lot out of him...
PHRASE: V inflects, PHR n
45.
If someone tells you to ~ five or to ~ ten, they are telling you to have a five or ten minute break from what you are doing. (mainly AM INFORMAL)
PHRASE: V inflects
46.
to be ~n aback: see aback
to ~ up arms: see arm
to ~ the biscuit: see biscuit
to ~ the bull by the horns: see bull
to ~ your hat off to someone : see hat
to ~ the mickey: see mickey
to ~ the piss out of someone : see piss
to ~ something as read: see read
to be ~n for a ride: see ride
to ~ someone by surprise: see surprise
~ my word for it: see word