take advantage of

phrase

1

: to make good use of (something) : to profit by (something)

take advantage of an opportunity

We took advantage of the warm weather and did some yard work.

2

a

: to impose on (someone) : to ask for or expect more than is fair or reasonable from (someone)

After a while, I began to think she was taking advantage of me.

He felt like he'd been taken advantage of.

b

: to use (something or someone) unfairly for personal gain

He took advantage of [=exploited] my lack of experience.

It adds that young people in care homes, with learning disabilities, those excluded from school or using drugs or alcohol are particularly vulnerable to being targeted by people who take advantage of them for money, food or drugs.

—Stephen Naysmith

c

: to exploit (someone) sexually

The star shared her experiences of Hollywood bosses who tried to take advantage of her in the early days of her career.

—The Belfast Telegraph Online

Examples of take advantage of in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

That said, with only five rooms, breakfast is actually the one time of day where the property is guests and staff-only so there’s a nice sense of quiet and exclusiveness to take advantage of outside the room. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 30 Sep. 2026

Another important feature to mention is Samsung DeX, which Okerfelt said more users should take advantage of. — Kimberly Gedeon, PC Magazine, 30 Sep. 2026

New users can take advantage of promo code FOXNEWSDYW to earn 10x 100% profit boost bonus bets when betting $1 on today’s MLB games. — Outkick, FOXNews.com, 30 Sep. 2026

For the couple, the biggest issue with the house, which rests on a 10,500-square-foot street-to-street lot, was that many rooms in the 2,000-square-foot home didn’t take advantage of the breathtaking views. — Lisa Boone, Los Angeles Times, 30 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1618, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for take advantage of

• above
• foxglove
• hereof
• thereof
• whereof
• dove
• glove
• love
• shove
• hereinabove