take root

idiomatic phrase

1

of a plant : to grow and develop roots : to become rooted

… damage to the ecosystem makes it easier for nonnative plants … to take root and crowd out native vegetation.

—Mary K. Miller

2

: to become fixed or established

… providing the steadiness and resolve needed to ensure that civilizations can take root and flourish.

—Greg Grandin

A monstrous suspicion had begun to take root in his mind.

—P. G. Wodehouse

Examples of take root in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Similar reluctance has been voiced for blood pressure medications and the new obesity drugs, but fears about muscle soreness, including a condition called rhabdomyolysis, have taken root specifically for statins. —Elizabeth Cooney, STAT, 5 Feb. 2026

Doctors are treating him for an ongoing infection that has taken root along the cable that connects the LVAD’s internal pump in his heart to the external controller outside his body. —Miami Herald, 4 Feb. 2026

This line of questioning is the very ground in which the IPS has taken root. —Catherine Taft, Artforum, 1 Feb. 2026

Twelve years in, Be My Neighbor Day is a continuation of a legacy that began here, took root here and continues to grow alongside Central Florida. —Jennifer Cook, The Orlando Sentinel, 1 Feb. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for take root

• absolute
• arrowroot
• attribute
• bitterroot
• constitute
• convolute
• destitute
• disrepute
• dissolute
• execute
• institute
• involute