take the reins
idiom
: to take control
The President-elect will officially take the reins in January.
Examples of take the reins in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Rookie or not, Mendoza would have to take the reins and allow everyone offensively to follow him.
—
Ed Graney Las Vegas Review-Journal, Arkansas Online, 21 Jan. 2026
Lauren Grimshaw Sloan will take the reins as Colorado’s newest film commissioner on Thursday, following a monthslong search that began when the former commissioner was fired without explanation in September.
—John Wenzel, Denver Post, 20 Jan. 2026
But the seven-member volunteer commission — long expected to take the reins from OPD’s federal overseers — still seems to be struggling to gain footing within Oakland’s complex bureaucratic tangles.
—Shomik Mukherjee, Mercury News, 9 Jan. 2026
Lane Kiffin’s messy departure from Ole Miss to take the reins at LSU six weeks ago is well-chronicled.
—Steve Henson, Los Angeles Times, 2 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for take the reins
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Ed Graney Las Vegas Review-Journal, Arkansas Online, 21 Jan. 2026
Lauren Grimshaw Sloan will take the reins as Colorado’s newest film commissioner on Thursday, following a monthslong search that began when the former commissioner was fired without explanation in September.
—John Wenzel, Denver Post, 20 Jan. 2026
But the seven-member volunteer commission — long expected to take the reins from OPD’s federal overseers — still seems to be struggling to gain footing within Oakland’s complex bureaucratic tangles.
—Shomik Mukherjee, Mercury News, 9 Jan. 2026
Lane Kiffin’s messy departure from Ole Miss to take the reins at LSU six weeks ago is well-chronicled.
—Steve Henson, Los Angeles Times, 2 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for take the reins
Cite this Entry
“Take the reins.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/take%20the%20reins. Accessed 2 Feb. 2026.
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