take shape

idiomatic phrase

: to assume a definite or distinctive form : to develop and become apparent or established
The plan is finally taking shape.
Edison's tireless work habits took shape during his childhood …Paul Gray
The proto-planetary fragments crashed together, coalesced by gravity, and crashed again into other fragments, until they gradually took shape as the planets we know today.M. Mitchell Waldrop
… the first half of the century, before the modern medical system took shape.Geoffrey Cowley

Examples of take shape in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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.
Teams that may have some postseason games to play are certainly showing themselves as playoff scenarios take shape in KC-area and regional college football. The Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 9 Nov. 2025 What's more, a new phenomenon is taking shape. Daniel Gonzalez, USA Today, 9 Nov. 2025 Erin’s Law took shape from there. Liz McNeil, PEOPLE, 9 Nov. 2025 Through a floor-to-ceiling glass wall, visitors get an unobstructed view into a real spacecraft clean room, where lander models like Peregrine and Griffin (which will one day land on the moon) took shape. Iona Brannon, Travel + Leisure, 8 Nov. 2025 See All Example Sentences for take shape

Word History

First Known Use

1560, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of take shape was in 1560

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Cite this Entry

“Take shape.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/take%20shape. Accessed 12 Nov. 2025.

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