take care

idiomatic 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

Parents will notice that kids start to feel more confident, empowered, and likely a reduction in their anxiety regarding their own ability to take care of themselves as well. —Katie Grant, Parents, 3 Jan. 2026

An expert will be able to use their equipment to take care of the issue. —Lauren David, Southern Living, 3 Jan. 2026

The first six bye teams — including the first two this season — couldn’t come back strong from an extra-long layoff, but the Hoosiers took care of business while improving to 25-2 under Cignetti. —Jackson Thompson, FOXNews.com, 2 Jan. 2026

Foster homes are also welcome from those who currently have no dogs in their home and are up to the challenge of taking care of a sick animal. —Paula Wethington, CBS News, 2 Jan. 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