The Phrasal Verb 'Take To' Explained
- Phrasal Verbs Explained
- Oct 3
- 12 min read
An explanation of the different meanings of the English phrasal verb 'take to' from a native speaker, with lots of examples in context
Hello and welcome to my website for English learners all about phrasal verbs where I explain their different meanings to help you understand, learn and use them like a native.
This post is all about the English phrasal verb 'take to'. I am certain that everyone reading this will be familiar with the construction 'take to', however do you know the different ways that you can use it as a phrasal verb? In this post, I will explain all of the different ways to use it, from the literal version that you are sure to know, to non-literal ones such as liking someone and hiding in your bedroom. I'll also provide you with common idioms that feature 'take to', lots of example sentences of how it is used and I will even explain why there is a duck in the picture above! So, without further ado, let's make a start....
TABLE OF CONTENTS (Click to jump to each one)
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THE BASICS
TAKE TO: KEY INFORMATION
Usage | Common |
Number of meanings | 5 |
Past tense forms | Took to / Taken to |
Separable? | Only with the literal application |
Phrasal verbs can often be very tough or confusing for learners to understand as their meanings can differ so much from the literal meanings of the words that form them. Despite this, I think it is a good idea to consider these words individually as they can often provide some clues to the less obvious phrasal verb meanings and so let's begin by looking at the words 'take' and 'to'.
I think that every one of you reading this post will be familiar with 'to take' because it is an extremely common irregular verb in English. Perhaps its main meaning is to 'transport someone or something from one place to another, often when it is away from where the speaker is, was or will be'.
Please can you take these documents to reception.
The taxi took us to the airport.
In addition, 'to take' has many other meanings, both common and rare, including 'to remove something', 'to last for a period of time' and 'to tolerate'.
Take a copy and pass the rest on to your classmates.
The journey from London to New York takes 7 hours by plane.
I don't think I can take much more pain; I need morphine!
The other word in our phrasal verb combination is the very common prepositional particle 'to'. This is actually one of the most common words in the English language and can be used in many ways, including to form the infinitive of a verb. Moreover, it is often used with movement to refer to a destination, direction or the recipient of something. Despite being so widespread in English, 'to' features in surprisingly few phrasal verbs when compared to particles like 'up' and 'down'. When it is included in phrasal verbs, it can add different ideas such as direction and communication.
So, now that we have covered the basics, let's move on to discover what happens when we combine 'take' and 'to' to form a phrasal verb....
MEANING 1: Literal
CEFR Language Level | A1 - Beginner |
Usage | Common |
Where is it used? | Everywhere |
Potential synonyms | To bring to, to deliver, to ferry |
Separable? | Yes |
Let's start with the literal meaning that we get from combining the words 'take' and 'to, which is simply 'to carry or transport something to a place'.
Nouns commonly used with this application....
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You should note that when 'take to' is used this way, it is not a true phrasal verb usage as we do not get a new meaning when we combine the words here; it is just a verb + preposition structure. Remember that a true phrasal verb is when the meaning is different to the sum of the parts (we will move on to these shortly).
We use this literal application to talk about physically transporting a person, animal or object from one place to another. This can be by carrying it or using a form of transport like a car or bicycle.
Be careful not to confuse this usage with 'bring to'. While both of these verbs talk about transporting someone or something, 'take to' is used when the movement is away from the speaker, or to another location from where the speaker is and 'bring to' is for when the movement is towards the speaker or where the speaker will be.
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On a grammatical level, unlike the non-literal applications of 'take to' that we will look at shortly, this application is separable and should always be used with the object between 'take' and 'to.
I have to take my car to the garage tomorrow.
Pamela took the kids to the park after school.
Please take this package to the post office before 4pm.
Nik took his grandmother to the hospital.
Can you take me to the airport for 6 a.m.?
The cable car will take you to the top of the mountain.
We took our dog to the vet last week for a check-up.
Take this cup of coffee to your Dad and wake him up.
Sue has taken her car to the garage to be looked at by a mechanic.
One other way that this can be used literally is when we use 'to take' with a form of public transport like a bus a or a train, meaning to travel on it. When you take a bus or train etc, it is common to state the destination of where you are going and for this we need 'to'.
I am taking a train to London in the morning.
The tourists took a boat to the island, where they spent the day.
MEANING 2: To start to like someone or something
CEFR Language Level | C1 - Advanced |
Usage | Medium |
Where is it used? | Everywhere |
Potential synonyms | To like, to take a shine to |
Separable? | No |
The second of the applications of the phrasal verb 'take to' that we will consider in this post is the first of the "proper" phrasal verb meanings and this one is 'to start to like someone or something'.
This application is used for both people and things, typically to describe those moments when people decide if they like someone or something shortly after meeting or experiencing them for the first time. From my own experience, I would say that it is more frequently heard in reference to people than to objects or things.
To explain further, think of those times in life when you meet someone for the first time and you immediately like them, perhaps because they are cheerful and friendly they say something nice about you, or there is something about their energy that appeals to you. In these situations, instead of saying that you liked them immediately, you could say that you "took to them straight away".
Alternatively, if you did not the like person or were not sure about them, you could say the same in the negative, i.e. you did not take to the person when you first met them.
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I wasn’t sure about the new manager at first, but I quickly took to him.
The puppy immediately took to its new home.
Surprisingly, the children took to the healthy food once they tried it.
Martha didn’t think she’d like city life, but she soon took to it.
It took Barbara a while to take to her new grandson but she loves him dearly now.
My Mum really did not take to my ex-girlfriend and told me that she was bad news from the start.
MEANING 3: To begin doing something regularly
CEFR Langage Level | C1 - Advanced |
Usage | Medium |
Where is it used? | Everywhere |
Potential synonyms | To take up, to make a habit of |
Separable? | No |
In the last section, I explained how 'take to' can be used to mean to begin liking something and for the third application, we are going to take things one step further as it means 'to begin doing something regularly'.
Nouns commonly used with this application....
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I guess this is quite a logical progression from the previous meaning as when we like something, we often do it again and if we do it regularly enough, it becomes a habit.
So, as you can probably guess, we use this application a lot with nouns for when people take up hobbies and pastimes. Note that these are mostly used in the gerund form e.g. cycling, running, playing football but in some cases we can also refer to nouns.
It is not only used with hobbies and pastimes though as it is also used to describe something that a person starts doing regularly (that they did not do before). This includes bad habits too such as drinking alcohol, smoking and stealing.
On a grammatical note, this is not separable and is mainly used in the simple past and present perfect tenses as you only really know something is a habit after the action has been done many times in the past.
After retiring, Jim took to gardening every morning.
John has taken to running as a way of forgetting about his work stress.
Louise took to reading the newspaper on the train to work.
Malcolm took to biting his nails whenever he felt nervous.
During the Covid lockdown, many people took to baking bread at home.
My grandfather has taken to walking with a stick, even though he doesn't really need one.
Shelley took to stealing money from her parents in order to buy cigarettes.
Leanne took to getting to work early just to enjoy some quiet time at the office.
MEANING 4: To learn how to do something quickly
CEFR Language Level | C1 - Advanced |
Usage | Medium |
Where is it used? | Everywhere |
Potential synonyms | To pick up |
Separable? | No |
Our fourth meaning of 'take to' is another one that is linked to the previous two applications and is 'to learn how to do something quickly'.
We all have things that we are naturally able to do easily, which other people may find difficult or harder to learn. For example, I am naturally good at learning languages, however I am terrible at driving and cooking and I do not possess any natural skills when it comes to these activities....none....ask anyone who knows me!
When a person starts learning something new, if the have a natural ability to do it and learn it very quickly, we can say that they "take to it". For example, you might say that a person takes to driving, or a child takes to riding a bike.
You should note that normally when we use this application we need to give an indication of how quickly the person takes to something and this is normally in the form of an adverb (quickly, immediately) or a phrase that functions as an adverb (after a short time, more quickly). If you're not sure, remember an adverb is used to describe a verb action.
Lastly, sometimes we can use this application to describe when a person starts doing something new in their life, like living in a new country or starting a new job, which links us nicely back to the previous application.
Suzanne took to skiing immediately, as if she had done it all her life.
Laura's children took to swimming after just a few lessons.
Surprisingly, Joanne took to the complicated software with ease.
Robert took to speaking French so naturally that his teacher was highly impressed.
The German tourists took to driving on the left-hand side of the road much more easily than they had expected.
My younger brother took to chess the very first time he played and beat the whole family.
BONUS: To take to something like a duck to water
You may have noticed the picture of the duck at the start of this post and wondered what on Earth a duck has to do with the phrasal verb 'take to'. Well, the reason for it is that we have a very well known idiomatic expression featuring both 'take to' and ducks in English, which is 'to take to something like a duck to water'.
If you take to something like a duck to water, it means that you find that you have a natural ability to do something when you try it for the first time and do not find it difficult or challenging. It could also be used for those times when you do something new without having any issues or problems with it, like starting school or a new job.
Paul took to his new job like a duck to water.
I was worried about my son starting university, but he took to it like a duck to water.
MEANING 5: To go somewhere to escape or for safety
CEFR Language Level | C1 - Advanced |
Usage | Rare |
Where is it used? | Everywhere |
Potential synonyms | To flee to, to withdraw, to flee to |
Separable? | No |
For the fifth and final application of 'take to', we are going to have a change of vibe as this one is not similar to the others and means 'to go somewhere to escape or for safety'.
Nouns commonly used with this application....
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Many of us have experienced times in our lives when we have needed to go somewhere in order to stay safe and in these often worrying and stressful situations, we can use the phrasal verb 'take to' with the name of the place of safety or comfort to describe this escaping action.
I would say that the most commonly used noun with this application is actually 'bed' as many people go to bed for long periods of time when they are ill or upset in some way as it offers a place of refuge, safety and comfort for us. Furthermore, some people (especially teenagers and young people) will take to their bedrooms to be alone where they feel safe.
In more extreme cases, people may take to a place of shelter or refuge in times of war and natural disasters when their homes and lives are threatened and to avoid danger. We also see this in the animal kingdom, with birds taking to the skies to avoid predators and mammals taking to the water to escape fires for example.
Lastly, you should note that this application is perhaps slightly more old-fashioned than the others, however it is still used in everyday English, so you well may come across it at some point!
Feeling unwell, Tracey took to her bed for the rest of the day.
The wounded soldier has taken to his tent to recover.
When the storm broke out, the mountain hikers took to a nearby cave for shelter.
After the argument with his parents, Callum took to his room and refused to come out.
During the riots in the city, many families took to the countryside to stay safe.
Exhausted after the long journey, the travellers took to their beds without dinner.
BONUS: Common idioms and expressions featuring 'take to'
We've already looked at the idiom 'to take to something like a duck to water', however we also have some other commonly used expressions and idioms featuring 'take to' that I want to make you aware of....
To take to the streets - The expression 'to take to the streets' is used to describe when people are angry and frustrated about something. As a result, they start demonstrating or, in extreme cases, rioting in the streets of a town or city. In other words, they want to show their opposition to something that has been decided by their government or an authority and want it to change.
Thousands of protesters took to the streets to demand justice after the new law was passed.
To take to the road - We use this expression to talk about when someone starts a journey, which is often one with many different destinations such as a tour. This could be a singer or group on a world tour to promote their music or a company on a marketing trip.
With just his backpack and guitar, Neil took to the road in search of adventure, fame and fortune.
To take someone to the cleaners - This idiomatic expression does not mean to take someone who is dirty to be cleaned but is rather used when someone takes all of your money or belongings in a way that is considered to be unfair or illegal. Let's hope you never need to use this one!
The con artist took the Ben's grandfather to the cleaners, leaving him with nothing in his bank account.
We have now reached the end of this post and I just want to say thank you for clicking on my post and reading it. I hope that you've enjoyed it and have been able to learn something new about the phrasal verb 'take to'. If you enjoyed this post, please go ahead and check out some of my other posts.
Now it is YOUR turn. Can you think of a sentence yourself using 'take to'. Write it in the comments section below if you can, or alternatively any comments, suggestions or feedback that you may have....don't be shy!!!
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THE END
Interesting as always