take

TAKE, v.t. pret. took; pp. taken. [L. doceo. This word seems to be allied to think, for we say, I think a thing to be so, or I take

it to be so. It seems also to be allied to Sax.teogan, to draw, to tug, L. duco; for we say, to take a likeness, and to draw a likeness. We use taking also for engaging, attracting. We say, a child takes to his mother or nurse, and a man takes to drink; which seem to include attaching and holding. We observe that take and teach are radically the same word.]

1. In a general sense, to get hold or gain possession of a thing in almost any manner, either by receiving it when offered, or by using exertion to obtain it. Take differs from seize, as it does not always imply haste, force or violence. It more generally denotes to gain or receive into possession in a peaceable manner, either passively or by active exertions. Thus,

2. To receive what is offered.

Then I took the cup at the Lord's hand. Jer.25.

3. To lay hold of; to get into one's power for keeping.

No man shall take the nether or the upper millstone to pledge. Deut.24.

4. To receive with a certain affection of mind. He takes it in good part; or he takes it very ill.

5. To catch by surprise or artifice; to circumvent.

Men in their loose unguarded hours they take,

Not that themselves are wise, but others weak.

6. To seize; to make prisoner. The troops entered, slew and took three hundred janizaries.

This man was taken of the Jews. Acts.23.

7. To captivate with pleasure; to engage the affections; to delight.

Neither let her take thee with her eyelids. Prov.6.

Cleombrotus was to taken with this prospect, that he had no patience.

8. To get into one's power by engines or nets; to entrap; to ensnare; as, to take foxes with traps; to take fishes with nets, or with hook and line.

9. To understand in a particular sense; to receive as meaning. I take your meaning.

You take me right.

Charity, taken in its largest extent, is nothing else but the sincere love to God and our neighbor.

10. To exact and receive.

Take no usury of him or increase. Lev.25.

11. To employ; to occupy. The prudent man always takes time for deliberation, before he passes judgment.

12. To agree to; to close in with; to comply with.

I take thee at thy word.

13. To form and adopt; as, to take a resolution.

14. To catch; to embrace; to seize; as, to take one by the hand; to take in the arms.

15. To admit; to receive as an impression; to suffer; as, to take a form or shape.

Yet thy moist clay is pliant to command;

Now take the mold--

16. To obtain by active exertion; as, to take revenge or satisfaction for an injury.

17. To receive; to receive into the mind.

They took knowledge of them that they had been with Jesus. Acts.4.

It appeared in his face that he took great contentment in this our question.

18. To swallow, as meat or drink; as, to take food; to take a glass of wine.

19. To swallow, as medicine; as, to take pills; to take stimulants.

20. To choose; to elect. Take which you please. But the sense of choosing, in this phrase, is derived from the connection of take with please. So we say, take your choice.

21. To copy.

Beauty alone could beauty take so right.

22. To fasten on; to seize. The frost has taken the corn; the worms have taken the vines.

Wheresoever he taketh him, he teareth him, and he foameth-- Mark 9.

23. To accept; not to refuse. He offered me a fee, but I would not take it.

Ye shall take no satisfaction for the life of a murderer. Num.35.

24. To adopt.

I will take you to me for a people. Ex.6.

25. To admit.

Let not a widow be taken into the number under threescore. 1 Tim 5.

26. To receive, as any temper or disposition of mind; as, to take shame to one's self; to take delight; to take pride or pleasure.

27. To endure; to bear without resentment; or to submit to without attempting to obtain satisfaction. He will take an affront from no man. Cannot you take a jest?

28. To draw; to deduce.

The firm belief of a future judgment is the most forcible motive to a good life, because taken from this consideration of the most lasting happiness and misery.

29. To assume; as, I take the liberty to say.

30. To allow; to admit; to receive as true, or not disputed; as, to take a thing for granted.

31. To suppose; to receive in thought; to entertain in opinion; to understand. This I take to be the man's motive.

He took that for virtue and affection which was nothing but vice in disguise.

You'd doubt his sex, and take him for a girl.

32. To seize; to invade; as, to be taken with a fever.

33. To have recourse to; as, the sparrow takes a bush; the cat takes a tree. [In this sense, we usually say, the bird takes to a bush, the squirrel takes to a tree.]

34. To receive into the mind.

Those do best, who take material hints to be judged by history.

35. To hire; to rent; to obtain possession on lease; as, to take a house or farm for a year.

36. To admit in copulation.

37. To draw; to copy; to paint a likeness; as a likeness taken by Reynolds.

38. To conquer and cause to surrender; to gain possession of by force or capitulation; as, to take an army, a city or a ship.

39. To be discovered or detected. He was taken in the very act.

40. To require or be necessary. It takes so much cloth to make a coat.

To take away, to deprive of; to bereave; as a bill for taking away the votes of bishops.

By your own law I take your life away.

1. To remove; as, to take away the consciousness of pleasure.

To take care, to be careful; to be solicitous for.

Doth God take care for oxen? 1 Cor.9.

1. To be cautious or vigilant.

To take care of, to superintend or oversee; to have the charge of keeping or securing.

To take a course, to resort to; to have recourse to measures.

The violence of storming is the course which God is forced to take for the destroying of sinners.

To take one's own course, to act one's pleasure; to pursue the measures of one's own choice.

To take down, to reduce; to bring lower; to depress; as, to take down pride, or the proud.

1. To swallow; as, to take down a potion.

2. To pull down; to pull to pieces; as, to take down a house or a scaffold.

3. To write; as, to take down a man's words at the time he utters them.

To take from, to deprive of.

I will smite thee, and take thine head from thee. 1 Sam.17.

1. To deduct; to subtract; as, to take one number from another.

2. To detract; to derogate.

To take heed, to be careful or cautious.

Take heed what doom against yourself you give.

To take heed to, to attend to with care. Take heed to thy ways.

To take hold, to seize; to fix on.take in, to inclose; to fence.

1. To encompass or embrace; to comprise; to comprehend.

2. To draw into a smaller compass; to contract; to brail or furl; as, to take in sail.

3. To cheat; to circumvent; to gull. [Not elegant.]

4. To admit; to receive; as, a vessel will take in more water. The landlord said he could take in no more lodgers.

5. To win by conquest. [Not in use.]

6. To receive into the mind or understanding.

Some bright genius can take in a long train of propositions.

To take in hand, to undertake; to attempt to execute any thing. Luke 1.

To take notice, to observe; or to observe with particular attention.

1. To show by some act that observation is made; to make remark upon. He heard what was said, but took no notice of it.

To take oath, to swear with solemnity, or in a judicial manner.

To take off, to remove, in various ways; to remove from the top of any thing; as, to take off a load; to take off one's hat, &c.

1. To cut off; as, to take off the head or a limb.

2. To destroy; as, to take off life.

3. To remove; to invalidate; as, to take off the force of an argument.

4. To withdraw; to call or draw away.

Keep foreign ideas from taking off the mind from its present pursuit.

5. To swallow; as, to take off a glass of wine.

6. To purchase; to take from in trade.

The Spaniards having no commodities that we will take off--

7. To copy.

Take off all their models in wood.

8. To imitate; to mimic.

9. To find place for; as more scholars than preferments can take off.

To take off from, to lessen; to remove in part. This takes off from the deformity of vice.

To take order with, to check. [Not much used.]

To take out, to remove from within a place; to separate; to deduct.

1. To draw out; to remove; to clear or cleanse from; as, to take out a stain or spot from cloth; to take out an unpleasant taste from wine.

To take part, to share. Take part in our rejoicing.

To take part with, to unite with; to join with.

To take place, to happen; to come, or come to pass.

1. To have effect; to prevail.

Where arms take place, all other pleas are vain.

To have effect; to prevail.

Where arms take place, all other pleas are vain.

To take effect, to have the intended effect; to be efficacious.

To take root, to live and grow; as a plant.

1. To be established; as principles.

To take up, to lift; to raise.

1. To buy or borrow; as, to take up goods to a large amount; to take up money at the bank.

2. To begin; as, to take up a lamentation. Ezek. 19.

3. In surgery, to fasten with a ligature.

4. To engross; to employ; to engage the attention; as, to take up the time.

5. To have final recourse to.

Arnobius asserts that men of the finest parts took up their rest in the christian religion.

6. To seize; to catch; to arrest; as, to take up a thief; to take up vagabonds.

7. To admit.

The ancients took up experiments upon credit.

8. To answer by reproof; to reprimand.

One of his relations took him up roundly.

9. To begin where another left off.

Soon as the evening shades prevail,

The moon takes up the wondrous tale.

10. To occupy; to fill; as, to take up a great deal of room.

11. To assume; to carry on or manage for another; as, to take up the quarrels of our neighbors.

12. To comprise; to include.

The noble poem of Palemon and Arcite--takes up seven years.

13. To adopt; to assume; as, to take up current opinions.

They take up our old trade of conquering.

14. To collect; to exact a tax.

15. To pay and receive; as, to take up a note at the bank.

To take up arms,

To take arms, To begin war; to begin resistance by force.

To take upon, to assume; to undertake. He takes upon himself to assert that the fact is capable of proof.

1. To appropriate to; to admit to be imputed to; as, to take upon one's self a punishment.

take side, to join one of two differing parties; to take an interest in one party.

To take to heart, to be sensibly affected by; to feel any thing sensibly.

To take advantage of, to catch by surprise; or to make use of a favorable state of things to the prejudice of another.

To take the advantage of, to use any advantage offered.

To take air, to be divulged or made public; to be disclosed; as a secret.

To take the air, to expose one's self to the open air.

To take a course, to begin a certain direction or way of proceeding.

To take leave, to bid adieu or farewell.

To take breath, to rest; to be recruited or refreshed.

To take aim, to direct the eye or a weapon to a particular object.

To take along, to carry, lead or convey.

To take a way, to begin a particular course or direction.

TAKE, v.i. To move or direct the course; to resort to, or to attach one's self; to betake one's self. The fox being hard pressed took to the hedge. My friend has left his music and taken to books.

The defluxion taking to his breast, wasted his lungs.

1. To please; to gain reception. The play will not take, unless it is set off with proper scenes.

Each wit may praise it for his own dear sake,

And hint he writ it, if the thing should take.

2. To have the intended or natural effect.

In impressions from mind to mind, the impression taketh.

3. To catch; to fix, or be fixed. He was inoculated, but the infection did not take.

When flame taketh and openeth, it giveth a noise.

To take after, to learn to follow; to copy; to imitate; as, he takes after a good pattern.

1. To resemble; as, the son takes after his father.

To take in with, to resort to.

To take for, to mistake; to suppose or think one thing to be another.

The lord of the land took us for spies. Gen.42.

take on, to be violently affected; as, the child takes on at a great rate.

1. To claim, as a character.

I take not on me here as a physician.

To take to, to apply to; to be fond of; to become attached to; as, to take to books; to take to evil practices.

1. To resort to; to betake to.

Men of learning who take to business, discharge it generally with greater honesty than men of the world.

To take up, to stop.

Sinners at last take up and settle in a contempt of all religion. [Not in use.]

1. To reform. [Not in use.]

To take up with, to be contented to receive; to receive without opposition; as, to take up with plain fare.

In affairs which may have an extensive influence on our future happiness, we should not take up with probabilities.

1. To lodge; to dwell. [Not in use.]

To take with, to please. The proposal takes well with him.