take on

verb

took on; taken on; taking on; takes on

transitive verb

1

a

: to begin to perform or deal with : undertake

took on new responsibilities

b

: to contend with as an opponent

took on the neighborhood bully

2

: engage, hire

3

a

: to assume or acquire as or as if one's own

the city's plaza takes on a carnival air

—W. T. LeViness

b

: to have as a mathematical domain or range

what values does the function take on

intransitive verb

: to show one's feelings especially of grief or anger in a demonstrative way

she cried, and took on like a distracted body

—Daniel Defoe

Synonyms

• battle
• encounter
• engage
• face
• meet

Examples of take on in a Sentence

will take on his chief opponent in the next political debate

decided to take her on as store manager

Recent Examples on the Web

And in Burberry’s Her Elixir, ripe fruit begets ripe fruit—blackberry is added in along with vanilla for a sophisticated take on a strawberry milkshake. —Margaux Anbouba, Vogue, 30 Apr. 2025

So specialty vape shops and smaller convenience stores have taken on all the risk. —Nicholas Florko, The Atlantic, 30 Apr. 2025

Records provided by the LAFD show that in 2022, Escobar took on an average of about nine overtime shifts a month. —Alene Tchekmedyian, Los Angeles Times, 30 Apr. 2025

Truthfully, the Eagles are uniquely positioned to take on more risk than other teams because their roster is so strong. —Ted Nguyen, New York Times, 30 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1567, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Rhymes for take on

• aileron
• antiphon
• autobahn
• carillon
• castellan
• celadon
• cephalon
• chitosan
• cynodon
• denouement
• deuteron
• echelon

Kids Definition

take on

verb

1

: to struggle with as an opponent

2

: employ entry 1 sense 2

took on more workers

3

: to acquire (as an appearance or quality) as one's own

take on weight

4

: to make an unusual show of one's feelings especially of grief or anger

don't take on so