took over; taken over; taking over; takes over
: to assume control or possession of or responsibility for
military leaders took over the government
Examples of takeover in a Sentence
Noun
The government experienced a military takeover in 2002.
the new government's high-handed takeover of private industries
Verb
I'll take over for her until she gets back from her morning break.
took over the responsibility of caring for the animals
Recent Examples on the Web
Liz Hoffman, semafor.com, 2 Mar. 2026
The law carries a potential death penalty and was widely used to arrest and imprison political opponents, journalists, and others involved in dissent since the 2021 army takeover.
—ABC News, 2 Mar. 2026
CBS News, 9 Mar. 2026
The package extended the belt-tightening path South Africa has been on since 2018, when President Cyril Ramaphosa took over a fiscally strained by ballooning budget shortfalls, rising budget shortfalls and a cascade of credit rating cuts.
—Tiisetso Motsoeneng, semafor.com, 9 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for takeover
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Noun
JPMorgan bankers will pitch investors in earnest this week in Miami on $20 billion of debt supporting Silver Lake and Saudi Arabia’s $55 billion takeover of Electronic Arts, people familiar with the matter said.
—Liz Hoffman, semafor.com, 2 Mar. 2026
The law carries a potential death penalty and was widely used to arrest and imprison political opponents, journalists, and others involved in dissent since the 2021 army takeover.
—ABC News, 2 Mar. 2026
Verb
Marco Donadel notched his first victory as Montreal's head coach after taking over on an interim basis last season when the club finished 13th and missed the playoffs.
—CBS News, 9 Mar. 2026
The package extended the belt-tightening path South Africa has been on since 2018, when President Cyril Ramaphosa took over a fiscally strained by ballooning budget shortfalls, rising budget shortfalls and a cascade of credit rating cuts.
—Tiisetso Motsoeneng, semafor.com, 9 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for takeover
Cite this Entry
“Takeover.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/takeover. Accessed 10 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationLegal Definition
takeover
noun
take·over
ˈtāk-ˌō-vər 
: the acquisition of control or possession (as of a corporation)
a hostile takeover
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
