take care

phrase

1

: to be careful or watchful : to exercise caution or prudence

Because fish is more delicate than beef, take care when pounding it thin.

—Sam Gugino

Patients also should take care in storing their drugs because heat exposure could affect their efficacy, [Aaron] Bernstein says.

—Marlene Cimons

—often used informally to express good wishes when parting, at the end of a message, etc.

I'll see you next week. Take care!

2

: to give particular attention to doing or not doing something

When he had finished writing, Cluny pushed the parchment under his pillow, taking care to leave just a small corner of it jutting out.

—Brian Jacques

In this land of ritual, Westerners should take care to inform themselves of protocol.

—Jeff Morgan

Open oysters carefully just before they are required, taking care not to spill the liquor in their deep shells.

—Elizabeth Craig

see also take care of

Examples of take care in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Although Paolo Banchero led all scorers with 35 points and neared a triple-double with seven rebounds and 10 assists, the Magic failed to take care the ball (20 turnovers) and couldn’t convert at the free throw line (nine missed free throws). — Jason Beede, The Orlando Sentinel, 22 Oct. 2026

This is because agents excel at replacing and taking care of things people would rather not do. — Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 22 Oct. 2026

The Patriots took care of business last week against the New York Jets as heavy favorites. — Matt Schooley, CBS News, 22 Oct. 2026

Engineers took care to preserve the temple’s alignment with the sun, so that more than 3,000 years after it was built, the light still finds its way inside. — ABC News, 22 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1562, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for take care

• aftercare
• anywhere
• billionaire
• chinaware
• debonair
• dinnerware
• disrepair
• doctrinaire
• earthenware
• everywhere
• frigidaire
• kitchenware