take (someone or something) seriously
idiom
: to treat (someone or something) as being very important and deserving attention or respect
He takes his religious faith seriously.
She's well qualified for the job, so she hopes the company will take her seriously.
His parents threatened to punish him, but he didn't take them seriously, since he had not been punished before.
Most politicians take themselves too seriously.
Examples of take (someone or something) seriously in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
For historical context, favorites have won 73 out of the 150 Preakness Stakes runnings, making Journalism's top billing something to take seriously.
—
Kilty Cleary, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 May 2025
More seriously, Baffert noted that he’d been pleasantly surprised by the increasing maturity Rodriguez had exhibited in training recently, which, in Baffert-parlance, is the trademark laconic New-Mexico-cowboy sort of praise that handicappers would do well to take seriously on Saturday.
—Guy Martin, Forbes.com, 29 Apr. 2025
The Supreme Court spent Wednesday morning giving very serious consideration to a case that no one should take seriously.
—Ian Millhiser, Vox, 26 Mar. 2025
Many countries take seriously their commitments under the U.N. Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.
—Tommy Tuberville, Newsweek, 7 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for take (someone or something) seriously
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Kilty Cleary, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 May 2025
More seriously, Baffert noted that he’d been pleasantly surprised by the increasing maturity Rodriguez had exhibited in training recently, which, in Baffert-parlance, is the trademark laconic New-Mexico-cowboy sort of praise that handicappers would do well to take seriously on Saturday.
—Guy Martin, Forbes.com, 29 Apr. 2025
The Supreme Court spent Wednesday morning giving very serious consideration to a case that no one should take seriously.
—Ian Millhiser, Vox, 26 Mar. 2025
Many countries take seriously their commitments under the U.N. Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.
—Tommy Tuberville, Newsweek, 7 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for take (someone or something) seriously
Cite this Entry
“Take (someone or something) seriously.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/take%20%28someone%20or%20something%29%20seriously. Accessed 2 Jun. 2025.
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