take to
verb
took to; taken to; taking to; takes to
1
: to go to or into (a place)
take to the woods/hills
Thousands of people took to the streets in protest. [=went out into the streets to protest]
He took to the airwaves [=he spoke on the radio] with his message.
2
: to begin doing (something) as a habit or regular practice
take to drink
—usually used with a following present participletake to drinking/smoking
He's recently taken to staying up late on weekends.
A few of her classmates took to calling her Pipi, after Pippi Longstocking …—
Calvin Tomkins
Calvin TomkinsRecently, he'd taken to wearing tuxedos and suits and had gotten a new car, she said.—Laura Italiano and Tamar Lapin
Laura Italiano and Tamar Lapin3
: to adapt oneself to
They haven't taken well to the new schedule.
4
: to start to have a liking for
I took to her immediately.
He tried skiing and took to it quickly. [=he quickly learned how to ski and liked doing it]
Note: To take to something like a duck (takes) to water is to begin to do it, use it, etc., in a very quick, easy, and natural way.
She took to horseback riding like a duck to water.
Deanna takes to student life like a duck takes to water, doing all the things that we all did …—Joe Anderton
see also take kindly to
Joe AndertonExamples of take to in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Following this news, movie and television fans took to social media to share what can only be described as mixed opinions.
—Callum Booth, Forbes, 26 Feb. 2025
On Tuesday at the Kings’ practice facility in El Segundo, Calif., Hughes took to the ice for practice somewhat later than his teammates.
—Thomas Drance, The Athletic, 26 Feb. 2025
Some users took to social media to share their frustration, noting that the outage was causing disruptions to their workday—or a sense of relief.
—Ross Rosenfeld, Newsweek, 26 Feb. 2025
Users on the app took to the comment section of the post to share their reactions to seeing the celebrity attending a college course.
—Mauricio Viladegutt, SPIN, 26 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for take to
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Callum Booth, Forbes, 26 Feb. 2025
On Tuesday at the Kings’ practice facility in El Segundo, Calif., Hughes took to the ice for practice somewhat later than his teammates.
—Thomas Drance, The Athletic, 26 Feb. 2025
Some users took to social media to share their frustration, noting that the outage was causing disruptions to their workday—or a sense of relief.
—Ross Rosenfeld, Newsweek, 26 Feb. 2025
Users on the app took to the comment section of the post to share their reactions to seeing the celebrity attending a college course.
—Mauricio Viladegutt, SPIN, 26 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for take to
Cite this Entry
“Take to.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/take%20to. Accessed 3 Mar. 2025.
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