take to

verb

took to; taken to; taking to; takes to

transitive verb

1

: to go to or into (a place)

take to the woods/hills

Thousands of people took to the streets in protest. [=went out into the streets to protest]

He took to the airwaves [=he spoke on the radio] with his message.

2

: to begin doing (something) as a habit or regular practice

take to drink

—usually used with a following present participle

take to drinking/smoking

He's recently taken to staying up late on weekends.

A few of her classmates took to calling her Pipi, after Pippi Longstocking …

—Calvin Tomkins

Recently, he'd taken to wearing tuxedos and suits and had gotten a new car, she said.

—Laura Italiano and Tamar Lapin

3

: to adapt oneself to

They haven't taken well to the new schedule.

4

: to start to have a liking for

I took to her immediately.

He tried skiing and took to it quickly. [=he quickly learned how to ski and liked doing it]

Note: To take to something like a duck (takes) to water is to begin to do it, use it, etc., in a very quick, easy, and natural way.

She took to horseback riding like a duck to water.

Deanna takes to student life like a duck takes to water, doing all the things that we all did …

—Joe Anderton

see also take kindly to

Examples of take to in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

One of the victims, a 38-year-old man, was struck to the arm and was taken to Stroger Hospital where he was later pronounced dead. —Deanese Williams-Harris, Chicago Tribune, 8 May 2026

Taylor Heinicke signed off on his NFL career Thursday evening, taking to social media to announce his retirement after an honorable seven-season career with five teams. —Armando Salguero Outkick, FOXNews.com, 8 May 2026

Watching those guys kind of take to that is part of it and the coaching. —Mike Kaye may 8, Charlotte Observer, 8 May 2026

One of the suspects died at the scene, while the other was taken to the hospital in critical but stable condition. —Cecilio Padilla, CBS News, 8 May 2026

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for take to

• amadou
• avenue
• ballyhoo
• baraboo
• barbecue
• barbeque
• bugaboo
• cabildo
• caribou
• cockatoo
• detinue
• devalue