In this study guide, we will teach you 16 common phrasal verbs with ‘take’. Learn their many meanings, explore real native examples of phrasal verbs in context, and try our exercises at the end to test your understanding. You can even save a pdf copy of this guide to use later. Ready? Let’s take a look!
To surprise or shock someone (old-fashioned, rare)
We were taken aback by the news.
His voice was so loud that it took us aback at first.
To be similar to someone in appearance or character, especially a family member
She’s very funny. She takes after her mother.
He takes after his father’s side of the family.
a. Take something apart or separate something into its different parts
He took my phone apart to fix it.
b. Showing the weakness of an argument or an idea
They will take our report apart and then give us feedback.
c. To criticise something (British English)
The reviewers took apart the new film.
a. To remove something
Take that table away as we don’t need it in here.
They took away my passport so I can’t travel.
b. To subtract a number or amount
Six take away four is two.
c. To buy food from a restaurant and eat it elsewhere
We ordered Chinese food to take away
d. To get a piece of information or message from something
What I took away from that film is that neither side wins in a war.
Take away from something
e. To reduce the positive effect of something
The drunken fight after the party took away from the celebration.
Take someone away
f. Bring someone from their home to an institution
He became very aggressive so we called the police and they took him away.
Take something back
a. Return something to the place you bought it
The dress was too tight so I took it back to the shop.
b. Admitting something you said/thought was wrong
You’re not selfish. I take that (comment) back.
c. To regain possession of
I took back my jacket from Sarah.
Take someone back
d. Allow someone to come back/return
He cheated on her but she finally took him back.
Takes you back (British English)
e. Reminds you of a time in your past
Playing that game took me back to my childhood.
Take something down
a. Reach up and get something from a high place
He took down the book from the top of the bookcase.
b. To dismantle a structure
After the music festival, they took down the stage.
c. To write down a piece of information
She took down John’s number so she could call him back.
Take somebody down
d. To humble or humiliate someone, to lower/reduce in power
The journalist took the politician down with her difficult questions.
e. To hit or shoot someone so they fall down
My brother would easily take you down in a fight!
f. To remove a prisoner from where they stand in court (British)
Court is adjourned. Take him down.
To believe something about somebody, often wrongly
You took me for an idiot.
She looks very mature so I took her for much older than 14.
Take somebody in
a. Allow someone to stay in your house/country
He had nowhere to go so she took him in.
b. When the police remove someone from their home in order to question them
The police took him in for questioning about the robbery.
c. Deceived by something/someone
She lied! I can’t believe I was taken in by her.
Take something in
d. To pay attention to, understand something
It was a very good speech and I took it all in.
e. See everything at the same time with just one look
When she walked into the room she took it all in.
f. Allow something to enter your body, by breathing or swallowing
Some plants take in a lot of water and can’t grow in dry places.
g. To make clothing smaller/tighter
She took in her dress as it was too big.
h. The amount of money a business gets from people buying goods or services
It was a successful year as the company took in £1.5 million.
i. To include or constitute something
The book takes in the period between the First and Second World Wars.
a. Leave the ground (an airplane, bird or insect)
The plane took off at 2pm.
b. To become successful or popular very suddenly
Her career took off.
c. To suddenly leave somewhere (informal)
He took off before I had a chance to say bye.
d. Imitate/impersonate somebody
She takes off her mother so well.
e. When a service is withdrawn
The program was taken off TV because it wasn’t very popular.
Take something off
f. To remove a piece of clothing
It was hot in the room so he took off his jumper.
g. Not go to work, but with permission
She took a week off to go and visit her family.
Take something on
a. Accept a job or responsibility, especially a difficult one
I took on the project.
b. Develop an appearance or quality
The room took on a 1970s look.
Take somebody on
c. Employ someone to do a job
I went for the interview last week and now they’ve decided to take me on.
d. To fight or compete against someone
Germany will take on Mexico in the first round of the World Cup.
e. Allowing people to get on a vehicle
We can only take on five more passengers at the next stop.
Take something out
a. Remove something from its place
I got my wisdom tooth taken out.
I took out my wallet from my bag.
b. Obtain something official, such as a loan, licence or insurance policy
She took out a loan from the bank.
c. Buy food from a restaurant and eat it elsewhere
Do you want that to eat in or take out?
Take someone out
d. Go somewhere with someone, you usually invite them and pay
David took his girlfriend out for dinner.
e. Kill or destroy someone/something
His entire army unit got taken out in Afghanistan.
Take it out of you
f. Something that requires a lot of effort and makes you tired
The journey to work this morning was a nightmare! It really took it out of me.
Take something out on someone
g. To treat someone badly because you feel upset or angry
Sorry, I was very upset yesterday and I took it out on you.
Take something over
a. To get control of a company, business
Facebook took over WhatsApp in 2014.
b. To seize power/control (e.g. of a country), often by force
When the protests started the army took over.
Take over from something
c. To become bigger/more important than something else, take control
Her desire to win took over.
Take over from somebody
d. To start having control of something, in place of somebody else
Susan is taking over from Anna as manager.
To explain something to someone
Let me take you through the instructions for the exam.
If you don’t understand what you’re meant to do, I can take you through it.
a. To like something/somebody
It was only the teacher’s first class but the students really took to him.
b. Start doing something often
She’s taken to drinking green tea every morning.
Something
a. Spend time doing something regularly (e.g. a hobby)
She took up swimming and started going twice a week.
b. Act on a question, problem or cause
When she read about the libraries closing, she took up the issue with her MP (Member of Parliament, local politician).
c. Start working at a job
He will take up his position next week.
d. Accept an offer or challenge
He was offered a promotion at work and, although it was a lot more work, he took up the challenge.
e. Use space, time or effort
I know you’re busy so I won’t take up too much of your time.
f. Get into a particular position
She took up a position in the corner of the room.
g. To start something after an interruption or someone else has started it
When David left the police, Anna took up his unfinished case.
Take somebody up on something
h. Say yes to an invitation or offer
– I can show you round London if you like. – I’ll take you up on that (offer)!
Take something up with somebody
i. Discuss a subject with someone, usually a complaint
If you’re unhappy with the service, you’ll have to take it up with my manager.
Accept responsibility for something
He took it upon himself to show the guests around.
I took it upon myself to give him the bad news.
Choose the correct phrasal verb to complete the sentences below:
Fill in the gaps with an appropriate ‘take’ phrasal verb:
Match the phrasal verbs 1-5 with their correct meanings a-e:
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Alex Jude is the Founder & CEO of Online Teachers UK. He holds a BA hons degree in Linguistics from The University of Manchester and is a life-long English teacher. Following graduation, he spent 2002-2012 living and teaching in Russia, where he lectured in General Linguistics and Translation Studies. Alex is a fluent Russian speaker and worked with the BBC at the World Cup in 2018. In his spare time, he enjoys camping/bushcraft, playing guitar and watching rugby league.
