take hold

idiomatic phrase

1

: to grasp, grip, or seize something

took hold and hung on tight

—often used with of

take hold of the railing

… she took hold of his arm with both her hands, and looked up eagerly—oh, with such terrible eagerness!—into his face.

—Anthony Trollope

—often used figuratively

As word of the subpoenas spread … confusion and hysteria took hold of the social set …

—Bob Colacello

I did not want Merlin to retire from the job until I was ready to take hold of it effectively myself …

—Mark Twain

2

: to become effective, established, or popular

The change in the law has not yet taken hold.

… a swath of land that has been spared from lava flows long enough that rich vegetation has had a chance to take hold.

—G. Brad Lewis

… here in central California the French aesthetic has recently taken hold.

—Rebecca Coffey

Examples of take hold in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

How else to explain the lightness of spirit that takes hold within just minutes of stepping foot on the property? —Sandra MacGregor, Forbes, 17 Dec. 2024

At the top of the lake lies Locarno, and there, as every summer dies, an annual risotto fever takes hold. —Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 16 Dec. 2024

The headline-grabbing union victory at the Amazon facility in Staten Island, New York, in 2022, accelerated an upsurge of labor organizing that took hold nationwide during the pandemic. —Max Zahn, ABC News, 13 Dec. 2024

This is a watch that opened the door for the larger watch trend that would fully take hold by the late ‘90s, paving the way for celebrity collaborations the likes of which feel commonplace these days. —Allen Farmelo, Robb Report, 13 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1530, in the meaning defined at sense 1