take on

verb

took on; taken on; taking on; takes on

transitive verb

1

a

: to begin to perform or deal with : undertake

took on new responsibilities

b

: to contend with as an opponent

took on the neighborhood bully

2

: engage, hire

3

a

: to assume or acquire as or as if one's own

the city's plaza takes on a carnival air

—W. T. LeViness

b

: to have as a mathematical domain or range

what values does the function take on

intransitive verb

: to show one's feelings especially of grief or anger in a demonstrative way

she cried, and took on like a distracted body

—Daniel Defoe

Synonyms

• battle
• encounter
• engage
• face
• meet

Examples of take on in a Sentence

will take on his chief opponent in the next political debate

decided to take her on as store manager

Recent Examples on the Web

In addition to outstanding drama series, Walter Goggins, who took on the role of Ghoul, was also nominated for outstanding actor in a drama series. —Esther Kang, Peoplemag, 16 Sep. 2024

Probably the biggest project the group ever took on was the restoration of the Andrew P. Hill House, a late 19th-century Queen Anne style house that was moved from Sherman Street to History Park in San Jose in 1997. —Sal Pizarro, The Mercury News, 16 Sep. 2024

So, the tech giant has created a new chief operating officer position and hired a Fortune 500 CFO to take on the role. —Bysheryl Estrada, Fortune, 16 Sep. 2024

Agriculture commissioner: Sarah Taber (Democrat) is taking on Steve Troxler (Republican, incumbent). —Lucille Sherman, Axios, 16 Sep. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1567, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Kids Definition

take on

verb

1

: to struggle with as an opponent

2

: employ entry 1 sense 2

took on more workers

3

: to acquire (as an appearance or quality) as one's own

take on weight

4

: to make an unusual show of one's feelings especially of grief or anger

don't take on so