to get hold of something with your hands and move or carry it to another place
Take your coat and follow me.
The mother carefully takes the baby out of the crib.
to swallow or use medicine, vitamins, or similar substances
You should take this pill after meals.
He takes vitamins every morning.
to need or require a certain amount of time, effort, or resources
The repair will take about two hours.
Learning a new language takes patience.
to think wrongly that someone or something is another person or thing
Many people mistake me for my older brother.
He mistook the salt for sugar and ruined the soup.
✦ From Old Norse ‘mistaka’ meaning “take wrongly”. The verb entered Middle English in the 14th century.
to understand something wrongly or give it the wrong meaning
Please don’t mistake my silence as disapproval.
She mistook the directions and ended up at the wrong address.
✦ Same Old Norse root as other senses, with meaning extended to wrong understanding by the 17th century.
to claim or mark ownership of something clearly, often by physical or verbal declaration
The prospector staked a claim to the gold-rich land.
Teenagers rushed to the concert gate to stake their places at the front.
✦ Sense borrowed from miners in 19th-century North America who literally drove stakes to mark property claims.
to begin and commit yourself to doing a job, task, or project
Our company will undertake a major redesign of its website next month.
Before you undertake the hike, make sure you have enough water.
to formally promise or agree to do something
I undertake to finish the report by Friday.
All volunteers must undertake to keep client information confidential.
